International Journal of Education and Social Science (IJESS)

This study attempts to apply expectancy theory to the degree of use of embedded discussion forums within online higher education courses. Simple descriptive statistical methods are used to test two hypotheses in terms of students meeting/ exceeding instructor expectations measured in a) timing of postings and b) quantity of postings (N=1,334).The findings of this study indicate that students tend to meet minimum instructor expectations for discussion board activity in terms of both timing and quantity of postings.