08832323.2012.672936
Journal of Education for Business
ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
College Student Choice Among Electronic and
Printed Textbook Options
Dmitriy V. Chulkov & Jason VanAlstine
To cite this article: Dmitriy V. Chulkov & Jason VanAlstine (2013) College Student Choice Among
Electronic and Printed Textbook Options, Journal of Education for Business, 88:4, 216-222, DOI:
10.1080/08832323.2012.672936
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Date: 11 January 2016, At: 21:01
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR BUSINESS, 88: 216–222, 2013
C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
Copyright
ISSN: 0883-2323 print / 1940-3356 online
DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2012.672936
College Student Choice Among Electronic
and Printed Textbook Options
Dmitriy V. Chulkov and Jason VanAlstine
Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 21:01 11 January 2016
Indiana University Kokomo, Kokomo, Indiana, USA
This empirical analysis focuses on student choices among electronic, new, and used printed
textbook media. No significant relationship between textbook medium choice and student
performance or demographic characteristics was observed. Ease of use and purchase and
learning style were considered by students while cost and ability to keep the book have the
most significant influence on medium selection. Results imply that multiple textbook media
allow students to self-select the option that works best for them.
Keywords: business education, electronic, instructional media, textbooks
Students and colleges face a greater range of textbook options
than ever before. Technological progress leads to increased
availability of alternative ways to access textbook content.
In addition to new and used printed textbooks, instructors
and students may have the choice of electronic textbooks
in file format, electronic textbooks accessed over the Internet, and electronic versions of a textbook with the right to
print (Young, 2010a, 2010b). Manufacturers of hardware devices such as tablets, smart phones, and e-readers are paying
growing attention to the textbook market (Kolowich, 2012;
Young, 2012), which is bound to increase electronic textbook
adoption by colleges and students. According to industry projections (Reynolds, 2011), the share of electronic textbooks
will increase from 3% of the market at the end of 2011 to
35% in 2016.
Textbook publishers experiment with various pricing
models (Beezer, 2009; Blumenstyk, 2008; Stewart, 2009).
In some cases, the online access to textbooks is even offered
free of charge, and only printing rights are sold for a fee
(Shelstad, 2011). Lower cost electronic options for textbook
content access provide an important factor in increasing the
adoption of electronic texts. Several universities advocate a
model of required electronic textbook use (Young, 2011).
The growth in the popularity of electronic textbook options and the advent of required e-textbook adoption in some
universities raises the question of the impact of electronic
Correspondence should be addressed to Jason VanAlstine, Indiana University Kokomo, School of Business, Kokomo, IN 46904–9003, USA.
E-mail: javanals@iuk.edu
textbooks on teaching and learning. There is a growing
body of research that addresses the impact of adopting an
electronic textbook (Baker-Eveleth, Miller, & Tucker, 2011;
Shepperd, Grace, & Koch, 2008; Woody, Daniel, & Baker,
2010). The focus of these studies is on whether student performance and satisfaction are affected by the use of electronic textbooks. The reported results are mixed. For instance, Shepperd et al. did not find any significant differences
in student performance between ones that used a printed textbook and ones that used an electronic text. However, the
students using the electronic textbook in this research reported less time spent reading and did not rate the electronic
textbook favorably. Woody et al. reported similar findings
that achievement of learning outcomes was not significantly
different between students using printed and electronic textbooks. However, there were differences in the learning habits
and student preferences as students that used a printed textbook were more likely to report using the book for exploring
captions and charts. Furthermore, most students strongly preferred the experience of using a printed textbook. In contrast,
Dennis (2011) reported the results of a pilot study that required the use of electronic textbooks in certain classes at
Indiana University. The students participating in this study
reported preference toward electronic books with the cost
providing the most important factor in e-textbook preference.
In addition to lower cost, the literature has identified
several advantages that electronic textbooks may provide.
Baker-Eveleth et al. (2011) argued that paper textbooks may
quickly become outdated while electronic ones are easier to
keep current. Instructors have the option of customizing and
updating textbook content with an online textbook (Miller &
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COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
Baker-Eveleth, 2010). Furthermore, the electronic format of
the textbook essentially changes the mechanism of interaction with the student and allows new ways of engagement
(Dorn, 2007). This factor helps promote the principles of
universal design (see Scott, McGuire, & Foley, 2003) and
improves inclusiveness for students with disabilities and diverse learning styles. Various digital textbook formats provide search capability and may be annotated (Nicholas, Rowlands, & Jamali, 2010). Dennis (2011) reported that the extent
of usage of these annotation features is significantly linked to
student performance. Electronic access to textbook content
may be complemented by additional collaborative and interactive technologies such as blogs or wikis. These technologies commonly referred to as Web 2.0 tools involve instructors and students in content development (Ravid, Kalman,
& Rafaeli, 2008) and have the potential to enhance student
engagement and learning (Contreras-Castillo, Favela, PerezFragoso, & Santamaria-del-Angel, 2004).
Challenges to the acceptance of electronic textbooks come
from such factors as the students’ lack of comfort in reading
from a computer screen and having been trained to use traditional printed textbooks (Carlson, 2005). Shepperd et al.
(2008) argued that an important disadvantage is the fact that
students are required to have access to a computer as well as
an Internet connection for some e-textbooks. This limits the
usefulness of an electronic textbook as the students cannot
take it everywhere they go, and are limited in taking notes
during lectures and studying during short breaks. Having the
electronic textbook available as an e-reader file answers some
of these concerns.
In this study we attempted to complement the literature on
several accounts. First, we report data on electronic textbook
use in an extensive sample of students from nine sections
of Economics courses at a regional campus of a public university in the U.S. Midwest. We confirm the results of such
studies as Shepperd et al. (2008) and Woody et al. (2010)
in that the demographic characteristics are not significantly
correlated with the selection of an electronic textbook and
that the use of an electronic textbook is not significantly
correlated with student performance. Second, we provide
evidence that addresses an important gap in the existing literature in focusing on student choice among various textbook
options. We explore the factors that influence student choice
among several available textbook media options with a survey. Survey results indicate that students rate cost, ease of
use, ease of purchase, and learning style as important factors for the textbook selection decision. Third, we perform
logistic regression analysis that leads to an empirical model
of the factors that significantly predict student choice. In this
model, student decision is presented as a two-stage process.
At the first stage, we demonstrate that students identifying
cost concerns as an important decision factor are more likely
to choose the online or used textbook format. The likelihood
of choosing a new textbook is negatively correlated with cost,
but positively correlated with the desire to keep the textbook
217
for future reference. At the second stage, we focus on the
subsample of students that did not choose a new book and
demonstrate that those students that identify the ability to
keep the textbook as an important factor are more likely to
choose a used textbook over an online version. Understanding these factors that guide student decisions on textbook
formats helps form policy choices at the university and the
instructor levels. The variety of factors that may influence
student choice demonstrates that forcing a single textbook
option, whether printed or electronic, may not be in the best
interest of students. All students do not approach textbook
selection in the same way, and having multiple textbook options has the potential for improving student experience in a
course.
METHODOLOGY
This study is based on a survey performed in nine sections
of introductory Economics courses at a regional campus of
a public U.S. university. Over 90% of the students present
in class completed the surveys providing a sample size of
158 responses. These courses were taught by two different
instructors and utilized two different textbooks. Four course
sections with 83 survey participants used Textbook A, that
was a well-established textbook from a traditional publisher
(Mankiw, 2012). This textbook was available as a new printed
book for $180.50, as a used printed book for $144.40 at the
college bookstore and as low as $110 at online booksellers,
and as an electronic book for $96. The other five sections with
75 survey participants used Textbook B from a publisher that
promotes an alternative business model and makes electronic
textbook available over the internet free of charge (Shelstad,
2011). This textbook (Rittenberg & Tregarthen, 2009) was
also available as a new black-and-white printed book for
$39.90 and as a used printed book for $31.90.
In order to study factors that affect student choice and
performance, the survey focused on three types of questions.
A copy of the survey instrument appears in the Appendix.
First, the survey established the demographic information
for each student. Second, a series of questions were asked
regarding the importance to the selection decision of factors
such as cost, ability to keep the book, and ease of use. These
factors were measured numerically with a 5-point scale. The
possible responses on the Likert-type scale ranged from 1
(least important) to 5 (very important). Finally, open-ended
questions asked the participants to explain in writing their
reason for the selection of the format they used.
Table 1 presents summary statistics for the survey. The
statistics are reported for the overall sample, as well as for
each of the two subsamples that used the two different textbooks. The survey that the students completed asked them
to identify the textbook medium that they selected from six
options that can be found in the appendix. We generalized
these choices into three categories by eliminating choices
218
D. V. CHULKOV AND J. VANALSTINE
TABLE 1
Summary Statistics
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Participants
Male
Female
Business majors
Nonbusiness majors
Nontraditional age
Average overall grade
Chose new textbook
Chose used textbook
Chose online textbook
TABLE 2
Textbook Medium Choice and Academic Performance
Complete sample
Textbook A
Textbook B
158
52%
48%
43%
57%
22%
83%
15%
62%
23%
83
55%
45%
41%
59%
19%
84%
10%
85%
5%
75
48%
52%
49%
51%
25%
82%
20%
37%
43%
that no students selected and by uniting the international
edition available for one of the textbooks with used editions.
From the cost standpoint, the international edition was close
to the used book price level. It was not an advertised option,
and few students selected it. Ultimately the students’ choices
are grouped into three categories: new, used–international
(hereafter used), and online.
Note that the demographic characteristics of the two subsamples are remarkably similar however the choices they
made were different. Only 5% of the students selected the
online version of Textbook A, while 43% selected the online version of Textbook B. The cost of the online and the
used textbooks available from each of the two publishers in
absolute terms as well as in relation to the cost of a new
textbook was quite different and may be reflected in the ultimate choice of the format by the students. Such differences
observed by the course instructors motivated the research
questions explored further in this study and the development
of the empirical model described in the following section.
RESULTS
Textbook Medium and Performance
The first research question we explore is whether students’
performance in the course was influenced by the textbook
medium they selected. Ordinary least squares regression was
used to evaluate the relationship between textbook medium
selection and classroom performance. Table 2 presents the
results of the coefficient estimates for this regression. Academic performance is measured by a student’s percentage
of points earned on all assignments. The independent variables were a vector of demographic variables including gender, age, class standing, and the student’s major, along with
dummy variables to indicate whether the student chose an
online textbook or a new textbook.
As Table 2 shows, no relationship was found between
classroom performance and textbook medium choice (i.e.,
no particular choice of textbook format was a reliable indicator of classroom performance). Additionally, several
Dependent variable is
academic performance
Student chose online textbook.
Student chose new printed textbook.
Student was male.
Student’s age was 24 years or less.
Student’s class standing was freshman.
Student’s class standing was junior.
Student’s class standing was senior.
Student’s major was nonbusiness.
Constant
Coefficient (β)
t
−2.032
−1.281
−0.885
−0.286
2.703
−2.393
0.796
1.738
83.967
1.07
0.56
0.57
0.14
1.03
1.29
0.27
1.06
35.56∗∗
Note. n observations = 158. df for all ts = 149.
= .01.
∗∗ p
demographic variables indicating gender, age, and class
standing were included. None of these included demographic
variables were found to have any significant relationship with
classroom performance. These results are consistent with results previously reported in such studies as Woody et al.
(2010) and Shepperd et al. (2008).
Demographic Characteristics
and Textbook Choice
One of the distinguishing features of this study was the
subjects’ ability to self-select the treatment protocol (i.e.,
students chose the textbook medium that they preferred).
This leads to the second research question as to whether
any observable demographic characteristics are accurate
predictors of textbook choice. Logistic regressions were
used to evaluate this relationship. In these regressions the
dependent variable is a dummy variable that indicates
whether a student chose a specific textbook medium. The
independent variables were demographic variables that
indicated the gender, age, class standing, and major.
The estimation results are reported in Table 3. Column
1 shows the results of the estimation with a binary dependent variable indicating whether or not an online textbook
was chosen. Column 3 shows the results of the estimation
with a binary dependent variable indicating whether or not a
new printed textbook was chosen. Columns 2 and 4 mimic
columns 1 and 3 respectively, except that the age variable
is dropped due to its correlation with class standing and the
class standing dummy variables are collapsed into one variable that indicates whether a student is a junior–senior or
not.
Table 3 shows that most of the demographic variables
studied did not impact the textbook medium that was selected by the students in these classes. No significant results were found to support a link between textbook selection and gender, age, or major. However, it was discovered
COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
219
TABLE 3
The Effect of Demographics on Textbook Medium Selection
1. Dependent variable
is 1 if online book
chosen
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Gender was male.
Age was 24 years or less.
Class standing was sophomore.
Class standing was junior.
Class standing was senior.
Major was nonbusiness.
Junior + senior
Constant
3. Dependent variable
is 1 if new printed
book chosen
2. Dependent variable
is 1 if online book
chosen
β
t
β
t
−0.244
−0.037
−0.743
−1.466
−1.687
0.661
0.62
0.07
1.32
2.18∗
1.73†
1.56
−0.194
0.50
−0.572
0.79
0.577
−0.899
−1.173
1.40
2.01∗
3.15∗∗
%
β
t
0.655
−0.826
1.013
1.416
1.438
−0.099
1.36
1.53
0.92
1.25
1.13
0.20
−2.604
2.20∗
4. Dependent variable
is 1 if new printed book
chosen
β
0.626
−0.046
0.714
−2.413
t
1.32
0.09
1.48
4.90∗∗
Note. n observations = 158. df values = 151 (Regression 1), 154 (Regression 2), 151 (Regression 3), and 154 (Regression 4).
= .10. ∗ p = .05. ∗∗ p = .01.
†p
that juniors and seniors were both less likely to use an online textbook than freshmen and that juniors and seniors
grouped together were less likely to choose an online textbook than freshmen and sophomores grouped together, as
indicated by the significant coefficient estimate of –0.899 in
column 2.
Factors Affecting Student Choice
In addition to evaluating the performance of students, we
were interested in the reasons why students selected a particular textbook format. As students’ demographic information
did not provide insight into the textbook choices that students
made, we moved on to examine the importance of several
factors that the authors believed students would consider
when making their selection. These factors were identified
based on instructor expectations and literature review and
include (a) ability to keep the book after the semester, (b) cost
(see Dennis, 2011; Redden, 2011), (c) ease of purchase, (d)
ease of use (see Baker-Eveleth, 2011), (e) student’s learning
style (Shepperd et al., 2008; Woody et al., 2010), and (f)
student’s technological ability (Dennis, 2011). Students
were asked to use a 5-point Likert-type scale to report how
important each of the factors were in their decision, with
responses ranging from 1 (not important at all) to 5 (very
important). These answers were given during the semester
after their textbook decision had already been made.
Table 4 summarizes the means and standard deviations
of the student responses. Due to the presence of missing
answers, the number of observations ranged from 156 to
157.
The mean of these responses provides some insight into
the importance of these factors for the students in their textbook selection decisions. Cost and ease of use have the highest mean responses with the lowest variances, suggesting
that these factors are generally identified as very important
for students when they select their preferred textbook for-
mat. Ease of purchase and learning style were also viewed
as important factors by these students, with mean values
between neutral and important on our scale. Ability to keep
and technological ability were not as important, having mean
values closer to the neutral response on our survey. None of
these factors alone provides policy implications for instructor or university-level textbook format decisions, but they
do show that students consider both cost factors and factors related to their ability to effectively use the textbook
to learn course materials in making their decisions in this
study.
Table 4 also reveals another important detail from the survey results in the variance of the student responses for the
importance of each of the factors considered. The fact that
the student responses are not highly concentrated indicates
that the students in our sample differ in the factors that influence their decision. This result is has important implications
for policymakers in higher education. As technology moves
forward and new advances in textbook markets emerge, instructors should consider textbooks that allow students to
self-select the format that works best for them. For instance,
even when online textbooks provide benefits on account of
cost and interactive features, choosing the online textbook
TABLE 4
Student Responses on Factors Considered When
Purchasing a Textbook
Variable
Ability to keep
Cost
Ease of purchase
Ease of use
Learning style
Technological ability
n
M
SD
156
157
157
157
157
157
2.75641
4.598726
3.847134
4.178344
3.821656
3.33758
1.397564
0.741273
1.15562
1.00322
1.146361
1.474371
Note. Scale minimum was 1 and maximum was 5.
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220
D. V. CHULKOV AND J. VANALSTINE
format exclusively would benefit some students at the expense of others. The same can be said for an instructor that
continues to offer only a printed textbook option to students.
Having observed the wide variation in factors that affect student choice of textbook format, we explored how
the students’ ranking of the importance of these factors informed their choice of textbook medium. In searching for
predictable patterns in the variation of student responses
in relation to their textbook choices, we found that a twostage model of the decision process fares well in describing the survey results. Figure 1 provides a visual representation of this decision model. In this model, students
first choose whether or not to buy a new printed textbook.
Next, students that did not select a new textbook make
the choice between a used printed textbook and an online
textbook.
In order to explore this decision-making process empirically, we estimated the model using a two-stage, logistic
regression. In the first stage the dependent variable was a
dummy variable that indicated whether a student selected
a new textbook or not. In the second stage the dependent
variable was a dummy variable that indicated whether a student selected an online textbook. In the first stage all student
responses were used, while in the second stage only the
students that did not select a new textbook were evaluated.
The independent variables for both stages were the vector
of survey responses indicating the importance that each student placed on each of the factors that we considered. A
dummy variable indicating class standing was also included
because it was shown to be related to textbook selection in
Table 3.
The results of the stage 1 and stage 2 estimations are
reported in Table 5 in columns 1 and 2, respectively. The
results indicate that students are more likely to purchase a
new printed textbook if keeping the textbook is important to
them or if cost is not an important factor for them. Twentythree students of the 156 that completed the survey made
this decision to purchase a new textbook. This indicates that
although the ability to keep did not appear to be an important
factor for the students in this survey based on the mean
response stated in Table 4, it was a more important positive
factor for the students that chose a new textbook than for
those that did not, all other things considered. Our estimates
from stage 2 indicate that the ability to keep the textbook was
FIGURE 1
TABLE 5
Factors Affecting Textbook Choice
1. Stage 1 dependent
variable is 1 is new
printed textbook
chosen (n
observations = 156)
Ability to keep
Cost
Ease of purchase
Ease of use
Learning style
Technological ability
Junior + senior
Constant
2. Stage 2
dependent variable
is 1 is online
textbook chosen (n
observations = 133)
β
t
β
t
0.522
−0.601
0.281
0.321
−0.241
−0.036
0.813
−2.444
2.74∗∗
1.98∗
1.00
0.88
0.76
0.17
1.62
1.48
−0.395
0.29
0.017
−0.014
0.047
0.042
−0.692
−1.503
2.32∗
0.83
0.08
0.06
0.21
0.24
1.52
0.85
∗ p = .05. ∗∗ p = .01. df values = 148 (Stage 1 regression 1), and 125
(Stage 2 regression).
also an important factor for predicting the decisions of the
remaining 133 students. The coefficient estimate of –0.395
indicates that students that placed a higher value on the ability
to keep their textbook were less likely to choose the online
textbook. It is possible that cost was not an important factor in
predicting the second decision due to the smaller gap between
used textbook prices and online textbook prices.
Also important was the lack of significant results for predicting textbook choice based on ease of use and learning
style. The survey means reported in Table 4 indicate that
both of these are important factors that students consider
when making textbook format decisions. This combined with
the lack of significant results in Table 5 indicates that both
students who choose online texts and those that chose more
traditional published versions made these decisions in part
based on their unique learning style and the ease of use that
they find through each textbook option. This provides strong
support for allowing students to select their own textbook
format as opposed to an instructor choosing one format over
the other. Additionally, our results indicate that technological
ability does not seem to be a strong barrier to online textbook
adoption as it was ranked the lowest in importance of the six
factors considered and did not seem to be correlated with the
Textbook selection process (color figure available online).
COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
actual decisions that students made when other factors were
considered.
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CONCLUSION
The availability of textbook medium options is on the rise
as traditional choices of new and used printed textbooks are
complemented by online, electronic, and customized printed
textbooks. Technological advances lead to increased interest
in the impact of electronic textbooks on higher education.
Policymakers consider changes such as the required use of
electronic textbooks in the hopes of reducing the costs of
education (Dennis, 2011). We examined the factors that influence student selection of textbook medium from a range
of options. Our results suggest that this selection process is
not a simple decision driven by a single factor, even one so
powerful as cost. We demonstrate that in our sample student
decision on textbook format selection may be presented as a
sequential model where students first choose whether to buy
a new printed textbook, and then students that did not select
a new textbook make the choice between a used printed textbook and an online one. Several conclusions follow from our
empirical analysis.
First, policymakers in higher education and instructors
should consider textbooks that feature multiple available formats and allow students to self-select the format that works
best for them. The wide variation in the factors that students see as important in selecting textbook format suggests
that a single format policy is not optimal. Even when online
textbooks provide benefits identified in the literature such
as lower cost and interactive features, choosing the online
textbook format exclusively would benefit some students at
the expense of others that would prefer a printed book. The
same can be said for an instructor that continues to offer exclusively a printed textbook to students without an electronic
option.
Second, while we do not find any significant impact of
the textbook format selection on academic performance, the
results suggest that some students see value in printed textbooks that is not provided by electronic ones. Those students
that are not concerned with cost are more likely to choose a
new printed textbook. Among the ones that did not select a
new textbook, the ones that see ability to keep as an important
factor are more likely to select a used printed textbook.
Finally, demographic variables have not provided any
significant relationship with students’ textbook format selections. Neither has their self-reported level of technological ability. Our study has not identified any specific
barrier to the acceptance of electronic textbooks; rather it
shows that students may be well served by variety in format
offerings.
The potential limitations in this study include the fact that
the data were collected on a regional campus of a large state
221
university. While the data show demographic variety and
come from nine course sections taught by different instructors with two different textbooks that each provided a range
of format options, additional validation from large-campus,
urban, or international schools will be helpful. The data were
collected in a business school and an application of the empirical model identified in this study may be best suited to
student choices in such schools.
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Shepperd, J., Grace, J., & Koch, E. (2008). Evaluating the electronic textbook: Is it time to dispense with the paper text? Teaching of Psychology,
35, 2–5.
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D. V. CHULKOV AND J. VANALSTINE
Stewart, R. (2009). Some thought on free textbooks. EduCause Review,
44(1), 24–26.
Woody, W., Daniel, D., & Baker, C. (2010). E-books or textbooks: Students
prefer textbooks. Computers & Education, 55, 945–948.
Young, J. (2010a, February 22). Format war heats up among publishers
of electronic textbooks. Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from
http://chronicle.com/article/Format-War-Heats-Up-Among/64323/
Young, J. (2010b, October 24). The end of the textbook as we know it.
Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/
article/The-End-of-the-Textbook-as-We/125044/
Young, J. (2011, September 15). Major publishers join Indiana University
project that requires students to use e-textbooks. Chronicle of Higher
Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/
major-publishers-join-indiana-u-project-that-requires-students-to-use-etextbooks/33156
Young, J. (2012, January 22). Campus reactions to Apple’s entry into
e-textbook market. Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/campus-reactions-to-applesentry-into-e-textbook-market/35119
APPENDIX—Survey Instrument Questions for
this Study
Name:
Gender (circle
one):
Male
Female
Class standing
(circle one):
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Graduate
Age (circle one): 24 or below
Major:
25 or above
1. Which format did you use for the course textbook?
(Not all options may be applicable.)
Online book
Published book (new)
Published book (used)
Published book (international edition)
Audio book
No book used.
2. Using the following scale, please evaluate each of the
following factors that you considered when choosing
which version of the textbook to use/purchase:
5 – Very important, 4 – Important, 3 – Neutral, 2 – Not
very important, 1 – Least important
Ability to keep the book for future use:
Cost:
Ease of purchase:
Ease of use:
Your learning style:
Your technological abilities:
3. Why did you choose the version of the book that you
used?
Senior
4. Do you see value for you in having multiple versions/formats of the textbook? Please explain why or
why not.
ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
College Student Choice Among Electronic and
Printed Textbook Options
Dmitriy V. Chulkov & Jason VanAlstine
To cite this article: Dmitriy V. Chulkov & Jason VanAlstine (2013) College Student Choice Among
Electronic and Printed Textbook Options, Journal of Education for Business, 88:4, 216-222, DOI:
10.1080/08832323.2012.672936
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08832323.2012.672936
Published online: 20 Apr 2013.
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Date: 11 January 2016, At: 21:01
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR BUSINESS, 88: 216–222, 2013
C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
Copyright
ISSN: 0883-2323 print / 1940-3356 online
DOI: 10.1080/08832323.2012.672936
College Student Choice Among Electronic
and Printed Textbook Options
Dmitriy V. Chulkov and Jason VanAlstine
Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 21:01 11 January 2016
Indiana University Kokomo, Kokomo, Indiana, USA
This empirical analysis focuses on student choices among electronic, new, and used printed
textbook media. No significant relationship between textbook medium choice and student
performance or demographic characteristics was observed. Ease of use and purchase and
learning style were considered by students while cost and ability to keep the book have the
most significant influence on medium selection. Results imply that multiple textbook media
allow students to self-select the option that works best for them.
Keywords: business education, electronic, instructional media, textbooks
Students and colleges face a greater range of textbook options
than ever before. Technological progress leads to increased
availability of alternative ways to access textbook content.
In addition to new and used printed textbooks, instructors
and students may have the choice of electronic textbooks
in file format, electronic textbooks accessed over the Internet, and electronic versions of a textbook with the right to
print (Young, 2010a, 2010b). Manufacturers of hardware devices such as tablets, smart phones, and e-readers are paying
growing attention to the textbook market (Kolowich, 2012;
Young, 2012), which is bound to increase electronic textbook
adoption by colleges and students. According to industry projections (Reynolds, 2011), the share of electronic textbooks
will increase from 3% of the market at the end of 2011 to
35% in 2016.
Textbook publishers experiment with various pricing
models (Beezer, 2009; Blumenstyk, 2008; Stewart, 2009).
In some cases, the online access to textbooks is even offered
free of charge, and only printing rights are sold for a fee
(Shelstad, 2011). Lower cost electronic options for textbook
content access provide an important factor in increasing the
adoption of electronic texts. Several universities advocate a
model of required electronic textbook use (Young, 2011).
The growth in the popularity of electronic textbook options and the advent of required e-textbook adoption in some
universities raises the question of the impact of electronic
Correspondence should be addressed to Jason VanAlstine, Indiana University Kokomo, School of Business, Kokomo, IN 46904–9003, USA.
E-mail: javanals@iuk.edu
textbooks on teaching and learning. There is a growing
body of research that addresses the impact of adopting an
electronic textbook (Baker-Eveleth, Miller, & Tucker, 2011;
Shepperd, Grace, & Koch, 2008; Woody, Daniel, & Baker,
2010). The focus of these studies is on whether student performance and satisfaction are affected by the use of electronic textbooks. The reported results are mixed. For instance, Shepperd et al. did not find any significant differences
in student performance between ones that used a printed textbook and ones that used an electronic text. However, the
students using the electronic textbook in this research reported less time spent reading and did not rate the electronic
textbook favorably. Woody et al. reported similar findings
that achievement of learning outcomes was not significantly
different between students using printed and electronic textbooks. However, there were differences in the learning habits
and student preferences as students that used a printed textbook were more likely to report using the book for exploring
captions and charts. Furthermore, most students strongly preferred the experience of using a printed textbook. In contrast,
Dennis (2011) reported the results of a pilot study that required the use of electronic textbooks in certain classes at
Indiana University. The students participating in this study
reported preference toward electronic books with the cost
providing the most important factor in e-textbook preference.
In addition to lower cost, the literature has identified
several advantages that electronic textbooks may provide.
Baker-Eveleth et al. (2011) argued that paper textbooks may
quickly become outdated while electronic ones are easier to
keep current. Instructors have the option of customizing and
updating textbook content with an online textbook (Miller &
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COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
Baker-Eveleth, 2010). Furthermore, the electronic format of
the textbook essentially changes the mechanism of interaction with the student and allows new ways of engagement
(Dorn, 2007). This factor helps promote the principles of
universal design (see Scott, McGuire, & Foley, 2003) and
improves inclusiveness for students with disabilities and diverse learning styles. Various digital textbook formats provide search capability and may be annotated (Nicholas, Rowlands, & Jamali, 2010). Dennis (2011) reported that the extent
of usage of these annotation features is significantly linked to
student performance. Electronic access to textbook content
may be complemented by additional collaborative and interactive technologies such as blogs or wikis. These technologies commonly referred to as Web 2.0 tools involve instructors and students in content development (Ravid, Kalman,
& Rafaeli, 2008) and have the potential to enhance student
engagement and learning (Contreras-Castillo, Favela, PerezFragoso, & Santamaria-del-Angel, 2004).
Challenges to the acceptance of electronic textbooks come
from such factors as the students’ lack of comfort in reading
from a computer screen and having been trained to use traditional printed textbooks (Carlson, 2005). Shepperd et al.
(2008) argued that an important disadvantage is the fact that
students are required to have access to a computer as well as
an Internet connection for some e-textbooks. This limits the
usefulness of an electronic textbook as the students cannot
take it everywhere they go, and are limited in taking notes
during lectures and studying during short breaks. Having the
electronic textbook available as an e-reader file answers some
of these concerns.
In this study we attempted to complement the literature on
several accounts. First, we report data on electronic textbook
use in an extensive sample of students from nine sections
of Economics courses at a regional campus of a public university in the U.S. Midwest. We confirm the results of such
studies as Shepperd et al. (2008) and Woody et al. (2010)
in that the demographic characteristics are not significantly
correlated with the selection of an electronic textbook and
that the use of an electronic textbook is not significantly
correlated with student performance. Second, we provide
evidence that addresses an important gap in the existing literature in focusing on student choice among various textbook
options. We explore the factors that influence student choice
among several available textbook media options with a survey. Survey results indicate that students rate cost, ease of
use, ease of purchase, and learning style as important factors for the textbook selection decision. Third, we perform
logistic regression analysis that leads to an empirical model
of the factors that significantly predict student choice. In this
model, student decision is presented as a two-stage process.
At the first stage, we demonstrate that students identifying
cost concerns as an important decision factor are more likely
to choose the online or used textbook format. The likelihood
of choosing a new textbook is negatively correlated with cost,
but positively correlated with the desire to keep the textbook
217
for future reference. At the second stage, we focus on the
subsample of students that did not choose a new book and
demonstrate that those students that identify the ability to
keep the textbook as an important factor are more likely to
choose a used textbook over an online version. Understanding these factors that guide student decisions on textbook
formats helps form policy choices at the university and the
instructor levels. The variety of factors that may influence
student choice demonstrates that forcing a single textbook
option, whether printed or electronic, may not be in the best
interest of students. All students do not approach textbook
selection in the same way, and having multiple textbook options has the potential for improving student experience in a
course.
METHODOLOGY
This study is based on a survey performed in nine sections
of introductory Economics courses at a regional campus of
a public U.S. university. Over 90% of the students present
in class completed the surveys providing a sample size of
158 responses. These courses were taught by two different
instructors and utilized two different textbooks. Four course
sections with 83 survey participants used Textbook A, that
was a well-established textbook from a traditional publisher
(Mankiw, 2012). This textbook was available as a new printed
book for $180.50, as a used printed book for $144.40 at the
college bookstore and as low as $110 at online booksellers,
and as an electronic book for $96. The other five sections with
75 survey participants used Textbook B from a publisher that
promotes an alternative business model and makes electronic
textbook available over the internet free of charge (Shelstad,
2011). This textbook (Rittenberg & Tregarthen, 2009) was
also available as a new black-and-white printed book for
$39.90 and as a used printed book for $31.90.
In order to study factors that affect student choice and
performance, the survey focused on three types of questions.
A copy of the survey instrument appears in the Appendix.
First, the survey established the demographic information
for each student. Second, a series of questions were asked
regarding the importance to the selection decision of factors
such as cost, ability to keep the book, and ease of use. These
factors were measured numerically with a 5-point scale. The
possible responses on the Likert-type scale ranged from 1
(least important) to 5 (very important). Finally, open-ended
questions asked the participants to explain in writing their
reason for the selection of the format they used.
Table 1 presents summary statistics for the survey. The
statistics are reported for the overall sample, as well as for
each of the two subsamples that used the two different textbooks. The survey that the students completed asked them
to identify the textbook medium that they selected from six
options that can be found in the appendix. We generalized
these choices into three categories by eliminating choices
218
D. V. CHULKOV AND J. VANALSTINE
TABLE 1
Summary Statistics
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Participants
Male
Female
Business majors
Nonbusiness majors
Nontraditional age
Average overall grade
Chose new textbook
Chose used textbook
Chose online textbook
TABLE 2
Textbook Medium Choice and Academic Performance
Complete sample
Textbook A
Textbook B
158
52%
48%
43%
57%
22%
83%
15%
62%
23%
83
55%
45%
41%
59%
19%
84%
10%
85%
5%
75
48%
52%
49%
51%
25%
82%
20%
37%
43%
that no students selected and by uniting the international
edition available for one of the textbooks with used editions.
From the cost standpoint, the international edition was close
to the used book price level. It was not an advertised option,
and few students selected it. Ultimately the students’ choices
are grouped into three categories: new, used–international
(hereafter used), and online.
Note that the demographic characteristics of the two subsamples are remarkably similar however the choices they
made were different. Only 5% of the students selected the
online version of Textbook A, while 43% selected the online version of Textbook B. The cost of the online and the
used textbooks available from each of the two publishers in
absolute terms as well as in relation to the cost of a new
textbook was quite different and may be reflected in the ultimate choice of the format by the students. Such differences
observed by the course instructors motivated the research
questions explored further in this study and the development
of the empirical model described in the following section.
RESULTS
Textbook Medium and Performance
The first research question we explore is whether students’
performance in the course was influenced by the textbook
medium they selected. Ordinary least squares regression was
used to evaluate the relationship between textbook medium
selection and classroom performance. Table 2 presents the
results of the coefficient estimates for this regression. Academic performance is measured by a student’s percentage
of points earned on all assignments. The independent variables were a vector of demographic variables including gender, age, class standing, and the student’s major, along with
dummy variables to indicate whether the student chose an
online textbook or a new textbook.
As Table 2 shows, no relationship was found between
classroom performance and textbook medium choice (i.e.,
no particular choice of textbook format was a reliable indicator of classroom performance). Additionally, several
Dependent variable is
academic performance
Student chose online textbook.
Student chose new printed textbook.
Student was male.
Student’s age was 24 years or less.
Student’s class standing was freshman.
Student’s class standing was junior.
Student’s class standing was senior.
Student’s major was nonbusiness.
Constant
Coefficient (β)
t
−2.032
−1.281
−0.885
−0.286
2.703
−2.393
0.796
1.738
83.967
1.07
0.56
0.57
0.14
1.03
1.29
0.27
1.06
35.56∗∗
Note. n observations = 158. df for all ts = 149.
= .01.
∗∗ p
demographic variables indicating gender, age, and class
standing were included. None of these included demographic
variables were found to have any significant relationship with
classroom performance. These results are consistent with results previously reported in such studies as Woody et al.
(2010) and Shepperd et al. (2008).
Demographic Characteristics
and Textbook Choice
One of the distinguishing features of this study was the
subjects’ ability to self-select the treatment protocol (i.e.,
students chose the textbook medium that they preferred).
This leads to the second research question as to whether
any observable demographic characteristics are accurate
predictors of textbook choice. Logistic regressions were
used to evaluate this relationship. In these regressions the
dependent variable is a dummy variable that indicates
whether a student chose a specific textbook medium. The
independent variables were demographic variables that
indicated the gender, age, class standing, and major.
The estimation results are reported in Table 3. Column
1 shows the results of the estimation with a binary dependent variable indicating whether or not an online textbook
was chosen. Column 3 shows the results of the estimation
with a binary dependent variable indicating whether or not a
new printed textbook was chosen. Columns 2 and 4 mimic
columns 1 and 3 respectively, except that the age variable
is dropped due to its correlation with class standing and the
class standing dummy variables are collapsed into one variable that indicates whether a student is a junior–senior or
not.
Table 3 shows that most of the demographic variables
studied did not impact the textbook medium that was selected by the students in these classes. No significant results were found to support a link between textbook selection and gender, age, or major. However, it was discovered
COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
219
TABLE 3
The Effect of Demographics on Textbook Medium Selection
1. Dependent variable
is 1 if online book
chosen
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Gender was male.
Age was 24 years or less.
Class standing was sophomore.
Class standing was junior.
Class standing was senior.
Major was nonbusiness.
Junior + senior
Constant
3. Dependent variable
is 1 if new printed
book chosen
2. Dependent variable
is 1 if online book
chosen
β
t
β
t
−0.244
−0.037
−0.743
−1.466
−1.687
0.661
0.62
0.07
1.32
2.18∗
1.73†
1.56
−0.194
0.50
−0.572
0.79
0.577
−0.899
−1.173
1.40
2.01∗
3.15∗∗
%
β
t
0.655
−0.826
1.013
1.416
1.438
−0.099
1.36
1.53
0.92
1.25
1.13
0.20
−2.604
2.20∗
4. Dependent variable
is 1 if new printed book
chosen
β
0.626
−0.046
0.714
−2.413
t
1.32
0.09
1.48
4.90∗∗
Note. n observations = 158. df values = 151 (Regression 1), 154 (Regression 2), 151 (Regression 3), and 154 (Regression 4).
= .10. ∗ p = .05. ∗∗ p = .01.
†p
that juniors and seniors were both less likely to use an online textbook than freshmen and that juniors and seniors
grouped together were less likely to choose an online textbook than freshmen and sophomores grouped together, as
indicated by the significant coefficient estimate of –0.899 in
column 2.
Factors Affecting Student Choice
In addition to evaluating the performance of students, we
were interested in the reasons why students selected a particular textbook format. As students’ demographic information
did not provide insight into the textbook choices that students
made, we moved on to examine the importance of several
factors that the authors believed students would consider
when making their selection. These factors were identified
based on instructor expectations and literature review and
include (a) ability to keep the book after the semester, (b) cost
(see Dennis, 2011; Redden, 2011), (c) ease of purchase, (d)
ease of use (see Baker-Eveleth, 2011), (e) student’s learning
style (Shepperd et al., 2008; Woody et al., 2010), and (f)
student’s technological ability (Dennis, 2011). Students
were asked to use a 5-point Likert-type scale to report how
important each of the factors were in their decision, with
responses ranging from 1 (not important at all) to 5 (very
important). These answers were given during the semester
after their textbook decision had already been made.
Table 4 summarizes the means and standard deviations
of the student responses. Due to the presence of missing
answers, the number of observations ranged from 156 to
157.
The mean of these responses provides some insight into
the importance of these factors for the students in their textbook selection decisions. Cost and ease of use have the highest mean responses with the lowest variances, suggesting
that these factors are generally identified as very important
for students when they select their preferred textbook for-
mat. Ease of purchase and learning style were also viewed
as important factors by these students, with mean values
between neutral and important on our scale. Ability to keep
and technological ability were not as important, having mean
values closer to the neutral response on our survey. None of
these factors alone provides policy implications for instructor or university-level textbook format decisions, but they
do show that students consider both cost factors and factors related to their ability to effectively use the textbook
to learn course materials in making their decisions in this
study.
Table 4 also reveals another important detail from the survey results in the variance of the student responses for the
importance of each of the factors considered. The fact that
the student responses are not highly concentrated indicates
that the students in our sample differ in the factors that influence their decision. This result is has important implications
for policymakers in higher education. As technology moves
forward and new advances in textbook markets emerge, instructors should consider textbooks that allow students to
self-select the format that works best for them. For instance,
even when online textbooks provide benefits on account of
cost and interactive features, choosing the online textbook
TABLE 4
Student Responses on Factors Considered When
Purchasing a Textbook
Variable
Ability to keep
Cost
Ease of purchase
Ease of use
Learning style
Technological ability
n
M
SD
156
157
157
157
157
157
2.75641
4.598726
3.847134
4.178344
3.821656
3.33758
1.397564
0.741273
1.15562
1.00322
1.146361
1.474371
Note. Scale minimum was 1 and maximum was 5.
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220
D. V. CHULKOV AND J. VANALSTINE
format exclusively would benefit some students at the expense of others. The same can be said for an instructor that
continues to offer only a printed textbook option to students.
Having observed the wide variation in factors that affect student choice of textbook format, we explored how
the students’ ranking of the importance of these factors informed their choice of textbook medium. In searching for
predictable patterns in the variation of student responses
in relation to their textbook choices, we found that a twostage model of the decision process fares well in describing the survey results. Figure 1 provides a visual representation of this decision model. In this model, students
first choose whether or not to buy a new printed textbook.
Next, students that did not select a new textbook make
the choice between a used printed textbook and an online
textbook.
In order to explore this decision-making process empirically, we estimated the model using a two-stage, logistic
regression. In the first stage the dependent variable was a
dummy variable that indicated whether a student selected
a new textbook or not. In the second stage the dependent
variable was a dummy variable that indicated whether a student selected an online textbook. In the first stage all student
responses were used, while in the second stage only the
students that did not select a new textbook were evaluated.
The independent variables for both stages were the vector
of survey responses indicating the importance that each student placed on each of the factors that we considered. A
dummy variable indicating class standing was also included
because it was shown to be related to textbook selection in
Table 3.
The results of the stage 1 and stage 2 estimations are
reported in Table 5 in columns 1 and 2, respectively. The
results indicate that students are more likely to purchase a
new printed textbook if keeping the textbook is important to
them or if cost is not an important factor for them. Twentythree students of the 156 that completed the survey made
this decision to purchase a new textbook. This indicates that
although the ability to keep did not appear to be an important
factor for the students in this survey based on the mean
response stated in Table 4, it was a more important positive
factor for the students that chose a new textbook than for
those that did not, all other things considered. Our estimates
from stage 2 indicate that the ability to keep the textbook was
FIGURE 1
TABLE 5
Factors Affecting Textbook Choice
1. Stage 1 dependent
variable is 1 is new
printed textbook
chosen (n
observations = 156)
Ability to keep
Cost
Ease of purchase
Ease of use
Learning style
Technological ability
Junior + senior
Constant
2. Stage 2
dependent variable
is 1 is online
textbook chosen (n
observations = 133)
β
t
β
t
0.522
−0.601
0.281
0.321
−0.241
−0.036
0.813
−2.444
2.74∗∗
1.98∗
1.00
0.88
0.76
0.17
1.62
1.48
−0.395
0.29
0.017
−0.014
0.047
0.042
−0.692
−1.503
2.32∗
0.83
0.08
0.06
0.21
0.24
1.52
0.85
∗ p = .05. ∗∗ p = .01. df values = 148 (Stage 1 regression 1), and 125
(Stage 2 regression).
also an important factor for predicting the decisions of the
remaining 133 students. The coefficient estimate of –0.395
indicates that students that placed a higher value on the ability
to keep their textbook were less likely to choose the online
textbook. It is possible that cost was not an important factor in
predicting the second decision due to the smaller gap between
used textbook prices and online textbook prices.
Also important was the lack of significant results for predicting textbook choice based on ease of use and learning
style. The survey means reported in Table 4 indicate that
both of these are important factors that students consider
when making textbook format decisions. This combined with
the lack of significant results in Table 5 indicates that both
students who choose online texts and those that chose more
traditional published versions made these decisions in part
based on their unique learning style and the ease of use that
they find through each textbook option. This provides strong
support for allowing students to select their own textbook
format as opposed to an instructor choosing one format over
the other. Additionally, our results indicate that technological
ability does not seem to be a strong barrier to online textbook
adoption as it was ranked the lowest in importance of the six
factors considered and did not seem to be correlated with the
Textbook selection process (color figure available online).
COLLEGE STUDENT TEXTBOOK CHOICE
actual decisions that students made when other factors were
considered.
Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 21:01 11 January 2016
CONCLUSION
The availability of textbook medium options is on the rise
as traditional choices of new and used printed textbooks are
complemented by online, electronic, and customized printed
textbooks. Technological advances lead to increased interest
in the impact of electronic textbooks on higher education.
Policymakers consider changes such as the required use of
electronic textbooks in the hopes of reducing the costs of
education (Dennis, 2011). We examined the factors that influence student selection of textbook medium from a range
of options. Our results suggest that this selection process is
not a simple decision driven by a single factor, even one so
powerful as cost. We demonstrate that in our sample student
decision on textbook format selection may be presented as a
sequential model where students first choose whether to buy
a new printed textbook, and then students that did not select
a new textbook make the choice between a used printed textbook and an online one. Several conclusions follow from our
empirical analysis.
First, policymakers in higher education and instructors
should consider textbooks that feature multiple available formats and allow students to self-select the format that works
best for them. The wide variation in the factors that students see as important in selecting textbook format suggests
that a single format policy is not optimal. Even when online
textbooks provide benefits identified in the literature such
as lower cost and interactive features, choosing the online
textbook format exclusively would benefit some students at
the expense of others that would prefer a printed book. The
same can be said for an instructor that continues to offer exclusively a printed textbook to students without an electronic
option.
Second, while we do not find any significant impact of
the textbook format selection on academic performance, the
results suggest that some students see value in printed textbooks that is not provided by electronic ones. Those students
that are not concerned with cost are more likely to choose a
new printed textbook. Among the ones that did not select a
new textbook, the ones that see ability to keep as an important
factor are more likely to select a used printed textbook.
Finally, demographic variables have not provided any
significant relationship with students’ textbook format selections. Neither has their self-reported level of technological ability. Our study has not identified any specific
barrier to the acceptance of electronic textbooks; rather it
shows that students may be well served by variety in format
offerings.
The potential limitations in this study include the fact that
the data were collected on a regional campus of a large state
221
university. While the data show demographic variety and
come from nine course sections taught by different instructors with two different textbooks that each provided a range
of format options, additional validation from large-campus,
urban, or international schools will be helpful. The data were
collected in a business school and an application of the empirical model identified in this study may be best suited to
student choices in such schools.
REFERENCES
Baker-Eveleth, L., Miller, J., & Tucker, L. (2011). Lowering business education cost with a custom professor-written online text. Journal of Education
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APPENDIX—Survey Instrument Questions for
this Study
Name:
Gender (circle
one):
Male
Female
Class standing
(circle one):
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Graduate
Age (circle one): 24 or below
Major:
25 or above
1. Which format did you use for the course textbook?
(Not all options may be applicable.)
Online book
Published book (new)
Published book (used)
Published book (international edition)
Audio book
No book used.
2. Using the following scale, please evaluate each of the
following factors that you considered when choosing
which version of the textbook to use/purchase:
5 – Very important, 4 – Important, 3 – Neutral, 2 – Not
very important, 1 – Least important
Ability to keep the book for future use:
Cost:
Ease of purchase:
Ease of use:
Your learning style:
Your technological abilities:
3. Why did you choose the version of the book that you
used?
Senior
4. Do you see value for you in having multiple versions/formats of the textbook? Please explain why or
why not.