The Effects of Web-Assisted Learning on Students' Anxiety

Abstract

As increasing amounts of study materials migrate onto the Web, a future is now conceivable in which using the Web for studying will be the most common method of studying. However, there is the suggestion that using the Internet can evoke specific types of anxiety in novice adult students. This study investigated the effects of using the Web to study on the anxiety levels of students who have used the Web regularly for at least six months and considered themselves familiar with it. The subjective anxiety levels of two groups of 30 postgraduate students were recorded immediately before and after using either the Web or a non-Web-based medium for studying. The group that used the Web recorded significantly higher anxiety levels than those who did not. The implication of this finding and possible solutions are discussed.