The Effects of Self-Regulated Learning Processes on E-Learning Outcomes in Organizational Settings

this paper focuses on employees’ e-learning processes during online job training. A new categorization of self-regulated learning strategies, that is, personal versus social learning strategies, is proposed, and measurement scales are developed. the new measures were tested using data collected from employees in a large company. Our approach provides context-relevant insights into online training providers and employees themselves. the results suggest that learners adopt different self-regulated learning strategies resulting in different e-learning outcomes. Furthermore, the use of self-regulated learning strategies is influenced by individual factors such as virtual competence and goal orientation, and job and contextual factors such as intellectual demand and cooperative norms. the findings can (1) help e-learners obtain better learning outcomes through their active use of varied learning strategies, (2) provide useful information for organizations that are currently using or plan to use e-learning 308 WAN, COMPEAu, AND hAggErty for training, and (3) inform software designers to integrate self-regulated learning strategy support in e-learning system design and development. Key WorDs anD phrases: e-learning, job training, learning outcomes, learning processes, self-regulated learning strategies, social cognitive theory. employee training has beCome an effeCtive Way to enhance organizational productivity. It is even more important today given the fast-changing nature of current work practices. research has shown that 50 percent of all employee skills become outdated within three to five years [67]. the cycle is even shorter for information technology (It) professionals because of the high rate of technology innovation. On the one hand, this phenomenon requires organizations to focus more on building internal capabilities by providing different kinds of job preparation and training. On the other hand, it suggests that a growing number of employees are seeking learning opportunities to regularly upgrade their skills and competencies. Consequently, demand is growing for ongoing research to determine optimal training approaches with real performance impact. unlike traditional courses provided by educational institutions that are focused on fundamental and relatively stable knowledge, corporate training programs must be developed within short time frames because their content quickly becomes outdated. Furthermore, for many large organizations, especially multinationals with constantly growing and changing global workforces, the management of training and learning has become increasingly complex. Difficulties arise due to the wide range of courses, the high volume of course materials, the coordination of training among distributed work locations with the potential for duplicated training services, the need to satisfy varied individual learning requests and competency levels, and above all, the need to contain costs while deriving value from training expenditures. the development of information systems (IS) has contributed immensely to solving workplace training problems. E-learning has emerged as a cost-effective way to deliver training at convenient times to a large number of employees in different locations. E-learning, defined as a virtual learning environment in which learners’ interactions with learning materials, peers, and instructors are mediated through Its, has become the fastest-growing form of education [4]. the American Society for training and Development found that even with the challenges of the recent economic crisis, u.S. organizations spent $134.07 billion on employee learning and development in 2008 [74], and earlier evidence suggested that close to 40 percent of training was delivered using e-learning technologies [73]. E-learning has been extended from its original application in It skill training to common business skill training, including management, leadership, communication, customer service, quality management, and human resource skills. Despite heavy investments in e-learning technologies, however, recent research suggests that organizations have not received the level of benefit from e-learning that was E-lEArNINg OutCOMES IN OrgANIZAtIONAl SEttINgS 309 originally anticipated [62]. One credible explanation has emerged from educational psychology showing that learners are neither motivated nor well prepared for the new e-learning environment [14]. Early IS research on e-learning focused on the technology design aspects of e-learning but has subsequently broadened to include all aspects of e-learning inputs (participant characteristics, technology design, instructional strategies), processes (psychological processes, learning behaviors), and outcomes (learning outcomes) [4, 55, 76]. however, less IS research has focused on the psychological processes users engage in that improve or limit their e-learning outcomes [76]. In this research, we contribute to the understanding of e-learning processes by bridging two bodies of literature, that is, self-regulated learning (Srl) in educational psychology and e-learning in IS research. More specifically, we focus on two research questions: RQ1: How do learners’ different e‐learning processes (e.g., using different SRL strategies) influence their learning outcomes? RQ2: How is a learner’s use of SRL strategies influenced by individual and con‐ textual factors salient within a business context? to address the first question, we extend prior research on Srl and propose a new conceptualization that distinguishes two types of Srl strategies: personal Srl strategies, such as self‐evaluation and goal setting and planning, for managing personally directed forms of learning; and social Srl strategies, such as seeking peer assistance and social comparison, for managing social-oriented forms of learning. Prior research (e.g., [64, 88]) suggests that the use of Srl strategies in general can improve learning outcomes. We propose to explore, describe, and measure a new type of Srl strategy—social Srl strategy—and to determine if it has an equally important influence on learning outcomes as the more widely studied personal Srl strategy. We theorize that both types of Srl strategies are influential during the learning process and expect they have different effects on e-learning outcomes. to examine the role of Srl strategies in e-learning, we situated the new constructs in a nomological network based on prior research [76]. this led to our second research question, which also deals more specifically with e-learning in business organizations. While research conducted in educational institutions can definitely inform business training practices, differences in the business context such as job requirements and competitive pressures may affect e-learning outcomes. From prior research we selected four antecedent factors that we hypothesize to be important influences on individual use of Srl strategies (both personal and our newly proposed social strategies). the first two are individual factors. learners’ goal orientation refers to the individual’s framing of the activity as either a performance or a mastery activity, where the former is associated with flawless performance and the latter is associated with developing capability [28]. Virtual competence, the second factor, reflects the individual’s capability to function in a virtual environment [78]. We also include two contextual factors that are particularly applicable to organizational settings: the intellectual demands of learners’ jobs and the group norms perceived by learners about cooperation among work group members. 310 WAN, COMPEAu, AND hAggErty In summary, this study contributes to e-learning research by focusing on adult learners’ Srl processes in job training contexts. It expands the nomological network of e-learning by identifying and elaborating social Srl strategy as an additional form of Srl strategy that is distinct from personal Srl strategy. We further test how different types of Srl strategies applied by learners during the e-learning process affect three types of e-learning outcomes. Our results suggest that learners using different Srl strategies achieve different learning outcomes and learners’ attributes and contextual factors do matter. theoretical background Social Cognitive theory and Self-regulation learning is the proCess of aCquiring, enhanCing, or moDifying an individual’s knowledge, skills, and values [39]. In this study, we apply social cognitive theory to investigate e-learning processes in organizational settings. Self-regulation is a distinctive feature of social cognitive theory and plays a central role in the theory’s application [56]. It refers to a set of principles and practices by which people monitor their own behaviors and consciously adjust those behaviors in pursuit of personal goals [8]. Srl is thus a proactive way of learning in which people manage their own learning processes. research has shown that self-regulated learners (i.e., individuals who intentionally manage their learning processes) can learn better than non-selfregulated learners in traditional academic and organizational training settings because they view learning as a systematic and controllable process and are willing to take greater responsibility for their learning [30, 64, 88, 92, 93]. the definition of Srl as the degree to which individuals are metacognitively, motivationally, and behaviorally active participants in their own learning process is an integration of previous research on learning strategies, metacognitive monitoring, self-concept perceptions, volitional strategies, and self-control [86, 89]. According to this conceptualization, Srl is a combination of three subprocesses: metacognitive processes, which include planning and organizing during learning; motivational processes, which include self-evaluation and self-consequences at various stages; and behavioral processes, which include sele