Determining University Students' Motivations for Using Computer Mediated Communication: a Repertory Grid Technique Approach

Motivated by the increasing popularity of computer-mediated communication (CMC) technologies in university students learning, this study investigated students’ motivations for using CMC technologies in their learning. Fifteen university students were interviewed using the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT) in order to elicit needs that they fulfill when choosing CMC for communication in their learning. Using ground theory approach, these elicited data were then classified into 8 categories: interpersonal/social utility, convenience, information seeking, connectivity, content management, social context cues, problem solving, and multimedia. We describe these eight categories and the paper concludes with a discussion of the importance and implications of understanding factors affecting students’ technology use in the contemporary media environment.