Digital Skills Development Factors as Predictors of Self-efficacy for Online Journalism among Undergraduate Mass Communication Students in Rwanda

Abstract

With new technologies like Internet shaping the future of the news media industry, research on a framework to measure journalism students’ confidence to professionally use these technologies is lacking. In addition, factors considered critical in the development of appropriate online journalism skills have not been systematically studied. To address this lacuna, this study sought to investigate the role of each of the following factors in predicting students’ self-efficacy for online journalism: (a) characteristics of training content (b) training resources (c) online media habits (d) industry experiences and (e) attitudes to online tools for professional development in predicting undergraduate mass communication students’ online journalism self-efficacy, OJSE. The study drew on three theories: experiential learning, technology acceptance and social cognitive theories. For data collection, a mixed methods approach was used. This involved a survey (n=182), five focus group discussions (8 participants from each school) and content analysis of online journalism modules of each school. The survey sample was proportionately drawn by gender from a population of all finalist undergraduate mass communication students in journalism schools of five Rwandan universities(N=293). The study tested null hypotheses that postulated no significant predictive relationship between each of the factors and the students’ OJSE. Correlation analysis showed that all the factors correlated positively with the students’ OJSE, with industry experiences having the greatest correlation (r=.527) and online habits having the least correlation (r=.270). Regression results indicated that each of the individual factors significantly predicted the students’ OJSE. However, the overall model revealed insignificant predictive power of the training content and the students’ online habits on the students’ OJSE(p>0.05). Industry experiences were the most significant predictor of the students’ OJSE, followed by training resources and online attitudes. Qualitative results largely corroborated survey findings: most modules had a practical bias, indicated diverse online journalism skills to be learnt and expected students to produce lots of hands-on work. The FGD participants generally affirmed the role of these factors as incidental to their OJSE. On the whole, the significant predictive roles of industry experiences, resources and online attitudes behoves journalism instructors to leverage these factors in preparing ‘online-ready’ professionals. The study recommended that online journalism instructors provide adequate opportunities and resources to master relevant online skills, balance growing student numbers with technical resources and instill positive perceptions in students regarding the future of online tools for career success. In addition, respondents suggested the need to diversify the online skills taught and have realistic module descriptions. To enrich the results of this study, more factors (for example motivation for digital skills and digital capital) may be explored. Researchers can also use a longitudinal approach with a bigger population and to trace the development of students’ online journalism self-efficacy from the time they enter the university to the time they graduate.