Multitasking behavior in online classrooms and academic performance: case of university students in Ecuador during COVID-19 outbreak

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore university students' multitasking behavior in online classrooms and their influence on academic performance. Also, the study examined students' opinions.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 302 university students fulfilled an online survey. Ten questions were focused on demographic information, five items evaluated online class behavior of students, 9 items evaluated self-efficacy and four items measured academic performance.

Findings

Multitasking behavior was found to negatively influence self-efficacy of −0.332, whereas self-efficacy showed a positive influence of 0.325 on academic performance. Cronbach's alpha and average variance extracted values were 0.780 and 0.527 (multitasking behavior), 0.875 and 0.503 (self-efficacy), 0.781 and 0.601 (academic performance). Outcomes of the bootstrapping test showed that the path coefficients are significant.

Originality/value

The research findings may help university managers understand undergraduates’ online and face-to-face behavior and strategies to improve the behavior to ensure the best academic outcomes. The novelty is based on using the partial least square structural equation modeling technique.

Citation

Alvarez-Risco, A., Estrada-Merino, A., Anderson-Seminario, M.d.l.M., Mlodzianowska, S., García-Ibarra, V., Villagomez-Buele, C. and Carvache-Franco, M. (2021), "Multitasking behavior in online classrooms and academic performance: case of university students in Ecuador during COVID-19 outbreak", Interactive Technology and Smart Education, Vol. 18 No. 3, pp. 422-434. https://doi.org/10.1108/ITSE-08-2020-0160