Manajemen | Fakultas Ekonomi Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji joeb.84.5.263-268

Journal of Education for Business

ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20

Using an Online Homework System to Submit
Accounting Homework: Role of Cognitive Need,
Computer Efficacy, and Perception
Jacob C. Peng
To cite this article: Jacob C. Peng (2009) Using an Online Homework System to Submit
Accounting Homework: Role of Cognitive Need, Computer Efficacy, and Perception, Journal of
Education for Business, 84:5, 263-268, DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.84.5.263-268
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.84.5.263-268

Published online: 07 Aug 2010.

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Using฀an฀Online฀Homework฀System฀to฀Submit฀
Accounting฀Homework:฀Role฀of฀Cognitive฀
Need,฀Computer฀Efficacy,฀and฀Perception
JACOB฀C.฀PENG
UNIVERSITY฀OF฀MICHIGAN–FLINT
FLINT,฀MICHIGAN

ABSTRACT.฀The฀author฀investigated฀
whether฀students’฀effort฀in฀working฀on฀
homework฀problems฀was฀affected฀by฀their฀

need฀for฀cognition,฀their฀perception฀of฀the฀
system,฀and฀their฀computer฀efficacy฀when฀
instructors฀used฀an฀online฀system฀to฀collect฀
accounting฀homework.฀Results฀showed฀that฀
individual฀intrinsic฀motivation฀and฀computer฀efficacy฀are฀important฀factors฀in฀determining฀effort฀and฀whether฀students฀perceive฀
the฀system฀to฀be฀useful.฀These฀findings฀are฀
of฀interest฀to฀educators฀and฀system฀designers฀as฀they฀consider฀implementing฀online฀
homework฀systems฀and฀determine฀which฀
types฀of฀students฀benefit฀most฀from฀the฀use฀
of฀these฀systems฀in฀classrooms.
Keywords:฀computer฀efficacy,฀need฀for฀
cognition,฀online฀homework,฀system฀feature
Copyright฀©฀2009฀Heldref฀Publications

฀

E

ducators฀ in฀ every฀ discipline฀ are฀
constantly฀ searching฀ for฀ effective฀

educational฀ technologies฀ that฀ help฀ students฀ learn.฀ Accounting฀ educators฀ are฀
no฀ exception.฀ One฀ technology฀ that฀ has฀
evolved฀recently฀is฀the฀online฀homework฀
system.฀ The฀ online฀ homework฀ system฀
allows฀ professors฀ to฀ use฀ Internet฀ technology฀ to฀ implement฀ homework฀ problems฀ that฀ students฀ are฀ able฀ to฀ complete฀
online.฀Because฀this฀system฀is฀automatic,฀ students฀ may฀ receive฀ their฀ graded฀
homework฀ almost฀ instantly฀ and฀ master฀
the฀materials฀through฀repetitive฀practice.฀
Some฀ advantages฀ of฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀system฀include฀“help[ing]฀students฀
practice฀accounting฀in฀an฀interactive฀and฀
engaging฀ manner,฀ confront[ing]฀ their฀
deficiencies฀in฀course฀prerequisites,฀and฀
ensur[ing]฀they฀grasp฀the฀skills฀and฀concepts฀ presented฀ in฀ their฀ textbooks—all฀
without฀ increasing฀ professors’฀ workload”฀(Aplia฀Inc.,฀2007,฀¶฀3).฀
One฀ of฀ the฀ most฀ acclaimed฀ features฀
of฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀ system฀ is฀ its฀
interactivity.฀ For฀ example,฀ a฀ student฀
can฀click฀a฀link฀to฀receive฀instant฀feedback฀ from฀ the฀ system.฀ If฀ allowed฀ by฀
the฀instructor,฀students฀can฀update฀their฀
answers฀ and฀ resubmit฀ the฀ homework฀

for฀ a฀ better฀ grade.฀ Furthermore,฀ if฀ the฀
instructor฀accepts฀multiple฀submissions,฀
students฀ can฀ work฀ on฀ homework฀ problems฀ repeatedly฀ until฀ they฀ are฀ satisfied฀ with฀ the฀ grade฀ they฀ receive.฀ Each฀
attempt฀by฀the฀student฀can฀come฀from฀a฀

different฀set฀of฀numbers฀if฀the฀instructor฀
chooses฀ to฀ apply฀ a฀ built-in฀ algorism฀ to฀
change฀problems.฀The฀online฀homework฀
system฀allows฀students฀to฀manage฀their฀
homework฀ by฀ exerting฀ as฀ much฀ effort฀
at฀ a฀ time฀ as฀ is฀ convenient฀ for฀ them.฀
One฀ reason฀ that฀ an฀ educational฀ technology฀ such฀ as฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀
system฀is฀developed฀is฀to฀help฀students฀
learn.฀ However,฀ the฀ hidden฀ assumption฀
that฀ whichever฀ information฀ technology฀
is฀ implemented฀ in฀ a฀ college฀ classroom฀
contributes฀to฀student฀learning฀receives฀
little฀ or฀ no฀ challenge฀ from฀ educators.฀
The฀ current฀ research฀ fills฀ this฀ gap฀ by฀
investigating฀ the฀ effects฀ of฀ some฀ individual฀ differences฀ on฀ student฀ effort฀ in฀

doing฀homework฀when฀the฀online฀homework฀system฀is฀used฀in฀class.฀
In฀the฀present฀study,฀I฀tried฀to฀determine฀ whether฀ students’฀ different฀ cognitive฀ needs,฀ their฀ perception฀ of฀ the฀
system’s฀ features,฀ and฀ their฀ computer฀
abilities฀ can฀ explain฀ their฀ effort฀ to฀ do฀
homework฀ by฀ using฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀system.฀Students฀from฀an฀accounting฀ principles฀ course฀ volunteered฀ to฀
participate฀in฀the฀present฀study฀by฀completing฀a฀survey฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀semester.฀ The฀ results฀ suggest฀ that฀ students฀
with฀ low฀ motivation,฀ measured฀ by฀ low฀
need฀for฀cognition฀(NFC),฀exerted฀more฀
effort฀ in฀ doing฀ homework฀ because฀ of฀
the฀ online฀ homework฀ system.฀ For฀ students฀ with฀ high฀ motivation,฀ measured฀
by฀ a฀ high฀ NFC,฀ it฀ is฀ possible฀ that฀ the฀
May/June฀2009฀

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implementation฀of฀the฀online฀homework฀
system฀ in฀ class฀ did฀ not฀ play฀ a฀ crucial฀
role฀ because฀ they฀ already฀ were฀ motivated฀to฀perform฀well฀in฀class.฀However,฀

highly฀motivated฀learners฀who฀perceive฀
the฀online฀homework฀system฀as฀interactive฀ seem฀ to฀ appreciate฀ the฀ system฀ by฀
using฀it฀more฀to฀do฀their฀homework.
The฀results฀also฀reveal฀that฀if฀students฀
believe฀that฀they฀are฀able฀to฀competently฀
use฀ computers,฀ they฀ exert฀ more฀ effort฀
in฀ using฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀ system.฀
Alternatively,฀ if฀ students฀ believe฀ that฀
their฀ ability฀ to฀ use฀ computers฀ is฀ poor,฀
they฀ use฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀ system฀
more฀ only฀ if฀ they฀ perceive฀ the฀ online฀
homework฀system฀to฀be฀interactive.฀
These฀findings฀may฀shed฀light฀on฀how฀
instructors฀ can฀ use฀ educational฀ technology฀ in฀ accounting฀ courses.฀ Specifically,฀
the฀implementation฀of฀educational฀technologies฀ cannot฀ use฀ a฀ one-size-fits-all฀
approach.฀ The฀ expectation฀ that฀ students฀
learn฀ from฀ using฀ an฀ online฀ homework฀
system฀ may฀ not฀ apply฀ to฀ all฀ students,฀
especially฀ students฀ with฀ different฀ levels฀
of฀cognitive฀need฀and฀computer฀efficacy.฀

System฀ developers฀ need฀ to฀ focus฀ more฀
on฀interface฀design,฀in฀addition฀to฀system฀
interactivity,฀ to฀ make฀ the฀ system฀ more฀
accessible฀ and฀ indirectly฀ motivate฀ students฀to฀use฀this฀technology฀in฀their฀learning.฀ The฀ present฀ article฀ also฀ contributes฀฀
to฀the฀stream฀of฀research฀in฀information฀
technology฀ by฀ focusing฀ on฀ user฀ differences฀ (Culnan,฀ 1983;฀ Seyal,฀ Rahman,฀
Noah,฀ &฀ Rahim,฀ 2002)฀ and฀ how฀ users฀
use฀ the฀ system.฀ Consistent฀ with฀ prior฀
findings,฀individual฀differences฀is฀a฀crucial฀factor฀in฀determining฀the฀success฀of฀
an฀educational฀information฀system฀(IS).฀
Literature฀Review฀and฀
Hypotheses฀Development
The฀literature฀is฀replete฀with฀research฀
investigating฀ various฀ factors฀ that฀
contribute฀ to฀ the฀ success฀ of฀ student฀
learning.฀ Among฀ these฀ factors,฀ doing฀
homework฀ is฀ recognized฀ to฀ be฀ one฀
of฀ the฀ most฀ important฀ factors฀ that฀
promote฀ student-learning฀ success฀ by฀
accounting฀educators฀(Peters,฀Kethley,฀&฀

Bullington,฀ 2002;฀ Rayburn฀ &฀ Rayburn,฀
1999).฀Eskew฀and฀Faley’s฀(1988)฀model฀
explains฀student฀exam฀performance฀in฀a฀
first฀ college-level฀ financial฀ accounting฀
course.฀ Eskew฀ and฀ Faley฀ noted฀ that฀
264฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

among฀their฀predictive฀variables,฀one฀of฀
the฀variables฀that฀has฀the฀largest฀marginal฀
contribution฀ to฀ the฀ model’s฀ explanatory฀
power฀is฀student฀effort.฀That฀is,฀students฀
who฀exert฀more฀effort฀during฀the฀semester฀
tend฀to฀perform฀better฀on฀the฀exam.฀The฀
positive฀ correlation฀ between฀ effort฀ and฀
class฀ performance฀ is฀ recognized฀ widely฀
by฀ accounting฀ educators.฀ Educators฀
often฀ assign฀ and฀ collect฀ homework฀
assignments฀ because฀ they฀ believe฀ that฀

doing฀ homework฀ requires฀ significant฀
effort฀ by฀ students฀ and฀ that฀ homework฀
can฀motivate฀students฀to฀study฀(Rayburn฀
&฀Rayburn).฀Farrelly฀and฀Hudson฀(1985)฀
showed฀ that฀ students฀ agree฀ with฀ their฀
professors฀in฀that฀homework฀can฀motivate฀
them฀ to฀ do฀ well฀ in฀ accounting฀ courses.฀
Students฀like฀to฀use฀multiple฀homework฀
assignments฀as฀a฀tool฀to฀learn฀accounting฀
subject฀matter.฀They฀also฀prefer฀that฀their฀
professor฀ spend฀ enough฀ time฀ reviewing฀
homework฀problems฀in฀class.฀
In฀addition฀to฀motivating฀student฀learning,฀ homework฀ assignments฀ are฀ used฀
to฀ stimulate฀ students’฀ problem-solving฀
skills.฀ Because฀ homework฀ problems฀฀
play฀a฀major฀role฀in฀the฀cognitive฀skillset฀ that฀ students฀ learn฀ from฀ accounting฀
courses฀ (Davidson฀ &฀ Baldwin,฀ 2005),฀
it฀ is฀ important฀ that฀ they฀ are฀ willing฀
to฀ embrace฀ the฀ cognitive฀ challenges฀
embedded฀ in฀ homework฀ problems฀ to฀

gain฀ skills฀ that฀ are฀ desired฀ highly฀ by฀
accounting฀ educators฀ and฀ practitioners.฀
As฀ a฀ response฀ to฀ the฀ need฀ for฀ 21stcentury฀ accounting฀ professionals,฀ the฀
accounting฀education฀establishment฀created฀the฀Accounting฀Education฀Change฀
Commission฀ in฀ the฀ 1990s.฀ Problemsolving฀ skills฀ are฀ emphasized฀ in฀ the฀
commission’s฀ recommendations฀ to฀
improve฀ accounting฀ curricula.฀ In฀ addition,฀ the฀ commission฀ also฀ recognizes฀
that฀motivated฀students฀are฀more฀likely฀
to฀ embrace฀ cognitive฀ challenges฀ and฀
complex฀problem-solving฀activities,฀and฀
that฀ these฀ are฀ students฀ who฀ are฀ sought฀
after฀ by฀ the฀ accounting฀ profession.฀ In฀
the฀ psychology฀ literature,฀ the฀ willingness฀ to฀ engage฀ in฀ and฀ enjoy฀ effortful฀
cognitive฀ endeavors฀ is฀ defined฀ as฀ the฀
NFC฀ (Cacioppo,฀ Petty,฀ Feinstein,฀ &฀
Jarvis,฀ 1996;฀ Cacioppo,฀ Petty,฀ &฀ Kao,฀
1984;฀ Peltier฀ &฀ Schibrowsky,฀ 1994).฀
The฀ NFC฀ is฀ an฀ individual฀ disposition฀
that฀ plays฀ a฀ key฀ role฀ in฀ the฀ evaluation฀of฀information฀(Tam฀&฀Ho,฀2005).฀

Researchers฀ have฀ also฀ found฀ that฀ the฀
NFC฀ affects฀ the฀ information-search฀
behavior฀ when฀ making฀ decisions฀ (Verplanken฀&฀Weenig,฀1993).฀
In฀ the฀ accounting฀ context,฀ Beattie,฀
Collins,฀ and฀ McInnis฀ (1997)฀ introduced฀the฀concept฀of฀deep฀learning฀into฀
accounting-education฀literature.฀A฀deep฀
learning฀ approach฀ is฀ needed฀ to฀ achieve฀
a฀conceptual฀form฀of฀learning.฀However,฀
students’฀learning฀orientation฀is฀at฀least฀
partly฀ determined฀ by฀ students’฀ motivation฀to฀learn.฀To฀design฀successful฀intervention฀ strategies฀ to฀ improve฀ teaching฀
and฀ learning,฀ a฀ more฀ in-depth฀ look฀ at฀
what฀ motivates฀ students฀ in฀ their฀ learning฀process฀and฀how฀they฀become฀more฀
motivated฀ is฀ necessary.฀ The฀ present฀
article฀ investigates฀ how฀ intrinsic฀ motivation฀activates฀behaviors฀such฀as฀doing฀
homework฀ (Ford,฀ 2006).฀ This฀ intrinsic฀ motivation฀ is฀ related฀ to฀ the฀ effort฀
exerted.฀ For฀ example,฀ auditors฀ with฀ a฀
low฀NFC฀are฀less฀motivated฀intrinsically฀ to฀ be฀ mentally฀ involved฀ in฀ complex฀
audit฀ decision฀ making.฀ To฀ avoid฀ more฀
unstructured฀ decision฀ making฀ later฀ in฀
the฀audit฀engagement,฀auditors฀who฀are฀
less฀motivated฀(low฀NFC)฀collect฀more฀
audit฀ evidence฀ in฀ the฀ early฀ stages฀ of฀
audit฀ engagement฀ (Ford฀ &฀ Pasewark,฀
2007).฀ Through฀ exerting฀ more฀ effort฀
by฀ collecting฀ audit฀ evidence฀ early฀ in฀
the฀ audit฀ process,฀ participants฀ in฀ Ford฀
and฀ Pasewark’s฀ study฀ were฀ comfortable฀with฀their฀audit฀performance.฀They฀
justified฀their฀audit฀performance฀by฀collecting฀more฀audit฀evidence฀so฀that฀they฀
could฀ avoid฀ more฀ complex฀ audit฀ decision฀making฀later.฀฀฀
In฀the฀online฀homework฀system฀context,฀students฀who฀are฀less฀motivated฀to฀
do฀homework฀are฀more฀likely฀to฀use฀the฀
instant฀feedback฀from฀the฀system฀so฀that฀
they฀ can฀ reduce฀ their฀ cognitive฀ burden฀
when฀working฀on฀homework฀problems.฀
Consistent฀ with฀ this฀ argument,฀ individuals฀ with฀ a฀ low฀ NFC฀ would฀ desire฀
easier฀tasks,฀possibly฀by฀increasing฀their฀
efforts฀to฀avoid฀cognitive฀burden.฀Thus,฀
I฀hypothesized฀the฀following:
Hypothesis฀ 1฀ (H1):฀ Students฀ with฀ a฀
low฀ NFC฀ increase฀ their฀ efforts฀ to฀ do฀
homework฀by฀using฀the฀online-homework฀system.
One฀ of฀ the฀ advantages฀ of฀ using฀ an฀
online฀ homework฀ system฀ to฀ administer฀

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and฀ deliver฀ accounting฀ homework฀ is฀
that฀ the฀ system฀ provides฀ interactive,฀
automatically฀ graded฀ assignments฀ that฀
ensure฀ students฀ exert฀ quality฀ effort฀ on฀
a฀ regular฀ basis฀ (Aplia฀ Inc.,฀ 2007).฀ The฀
Appendix฀ shows฀ an฀ example฀ of฀ an฀
accounting฀problem฀that฀was฀used฀in฀the฀
online฀ homework฀ system.฀ The฀ system฀
presents฀ an฀ accounting฀ problem฀ one฀
step฀at฀a฀time.฀Students฀are฀able฀to฀work฀
on฀the฀problem฀following฀the฀guidance฀
provided฀ by฀ the฀ system.฀ At฀ any฀ time,฀
students฀can฀request฀system฀feedback฀to฀
check฀ their฀ performance฀ and฀ progress.฀
More฀hints฀or฀links฀to฀content฀areas฀are฀
presented฀ to฀ students฀ so฀ that฀ they฀ can฀
study฀ related฀ content฀ before฀ they฀ redo฀
the฀problem.฀Consistent฀with฀Lindquist฀
and฀Olsen’s฀(2007)฀study,฀students฀who฀
received฀ feedback฀ on฀ their฀ accounting฀
homework฀ were฀ more฀ often฀ satisfied,฀
and฀ their฀ perception฀ of฀ learning฀ was฀
greater.฀Farrelly฀and฀Hudson฀(1985)฀also฀
found฀that฀“providing฀copies฀of฀printed฀
solutions฀to฀homework฀after฀homework฀
is฀due”฀is฀desired฀highly฀by฀accounting฀
students฀ (p.฀ 49).฀ In฀ accordance,฀
Hypothesis฀ 2฀ predicts฀ that฀ if฀ students฀
perceive฀ that฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀
system฀is฀interactive,฀they฀increase฀their฀
efforts฀to฀do฀homework.฀
H2:฀ Students฀ who฀ perceive฀ the฀ online฀
homework฀ system฀ to฀ be฀ interactive฀
increase฀ their฀ efforts฀ to฀ do฀ homework฀ by฀ spending฀ more฀ time฀ using฀
the฀online฀homework฀system.
Researchers฀ have฀ demonstrated฀ that฀
the฀ perceived฀ IS฀ features฀ likely฀ affect฀
the฀ system฀ use.฀ In฀ addition,฀ user฀ motivation฀is฀important฀to฀promote฀the฀new฀
technology.฀ Although฀ the฀ technology฀
can฀ help฀ students฀ do฀ homework,฀ students’฀ motivation฀ affects฀ how฀ they฀ use฀
the฀ online฀ homework฀ system.฀ Raman,฀
Ryan,฀ and฀ Olfman฀ (2005)฀ found฀ that฀
in฀addition฀to฀the฀technology฀itself,฀the฀
successful฀ implementation฀ of฀ instructional฀ technology฀ in฀ class฀ to฀ help฀ students฀ learn฀ may฀ depend฀ on฀ student฀
motivation.฀ As฀ a฀ result,฀ the฀ following฀
hypothesis฀is฀proposed:
H3:฀ The฀ perceived฀ system฀ interactivity฀
and฀ students’฀ NFC฀ (internal฀
motivation)฀ affect฀ the฀ effort฀ of฀
doing฀ homework฀ by฀ using฀ an฀ online฀
homework฀system.
฀

Understanding฀ the฀ factors฀ that฀ affect฀
an฀individual’s฀use฀of฀computers฀or฀technologies฀has฀been฀a฀topic฀of฀IS฀research฀
for฀ a฀ long฀ time.฀ From฀ the฀ social฀ psychology฀ literature,฀ Davis,฀ Bagozzi,฀ and฀
Warshaw฀ (1986)฀ proposed฀ the฀ technology฀ acceptance฀ model฀ on฀ the฀ basis฀ of฀
Fishbein฀ and฀ Ajzen’s฀ (1975)฀ theory฀ of฀
reasoned฀action.฀In฀essence,฀the฀original฀
technology฀acceptance฀model฀posits฀that฀
the฀intention฀to฀use฀technology฀is฀a฀function฀of฀the฀perceived฀ease฀of฀use฀and฀the฀
perceived฀ usefulness฀ of฀ the฀ technology.฀
This฀model฀is฀used฀widely฀in฀IS฀literature฀
and฀has฀demonstrated฀validity.฀However,฀
many฀recent฀research฀papers฀have฀recognized฀ that฀ additional฀ explanatory฀ variables฀are฀needed฀to฀fully฀understand฀how฀
individuals฀ accept฀ and฀ use฀ technology.฀
One฀ such฀ variable฀ is฀ user’s฀ individual฀
differences.฀Researchers฀have฀found฀that฀
computer฀self-efficacy,฀or฀an฀individual’s฀
confidence฀in฀his฀or฀her฀ability฀to฀competently฀use฀computers฀(Compeau฀&฀Higgins,฀ 1995),฀ is฀ a฀ significant฀ predictor฀
of฀ computer฀ use.฀ Understanding฀ individual฀ user฀ differences฀ is฀ important฀ in฀
a฀ computer-assisted฀ education฀ environment฀ such฀ as฀ an฀ online฀ homework฀ system,฀ so฀ that฀ advanced฀ intervention฀ can฀
be฀ designed฀ to฀ increase฀ system฀ use฀ and฀
facilitate฀ students’฀ learning.฀ Therefore,฀
the฀following฀hypothesis฀is฀proposed:
H4:฀Students฀with฀a฀high฀degree฀of฀computer฀ efficacy฀ increase฀ their฀ efforts฀
spent฀ on฀ homework฀ by฀ using฀ the฀
online฀homework฀system.฀
As฀I฀described฀previously,฀IS฀researchers฀have฀examined฀how฀different฀factors฀
contribute฀to฀the฀use฀of฀computers.฀Venkatesh,฀Morris,฀Davis,฀and฀Davis฀(2003)฀
proposed฀a฀unified฀model฀that฀explained฀
that฀the฀use฀of฀technology,฀performance฀
expectancy,฀ effort฀ expectancy,฀ as฀ well฀
as฀social฀influence฀and฀facilitating฀conditions฀ are฀ four฀ significant฀ factors฀ that฀
determine฀ technology฀ acceptance฀ and฀
use.฀ Because฀ online฀ homework฀ systems฀provide฀easy-to-use฀interfaces฀and฀
instant฀ feedback฀ to฀ students,฀ students฀
should฀ expect฀ the฀ systems฀ to฀ be฀ helpful฀in฀studying฀subject฀matter฀with฀less฀
effort.฀ In฀ terms฀ of฀ social฀ influence฀ and฀
facilitating฀ conditions฀ that฀ determine฀
the฀ use฀ of฀ technology,฀ the฀ instructor฀
requires฀ students฀ to฀ submit฀ homework฀

using฀ the฀ system.฀ Therefore,฀ they฀ are฀
definitely฀ under฀ the฀ instructor’s฀ influence฀to฀use฀the฀system.฀As฀a฀result,฀these฀
factors฀ should฀ all฀ contribute฀ to฀ the฀ use฀
of฀ the฀ system฀ to฀ promote฀ effort฀ toward฀
doing฀homework.฀
Compeau฀and฀Higgins฀(1995)฀studied฀
how฀ different฀ computer฀ training฀ methods฀ affect฀ computer฀ task฀ performance.฀
They฀found฀that฀if฀both฀individuals฀are฀
familiar฀with฀the฀task,฀the฀individual฀with฀
high฀computer฀efficacy฀scores฀higher฀on฀
performance฀measures฀than฀the฀one฀who฀
lacks฀confidence.฀In฀other฀words,฀exogenous฀factors฀such฀as฀prior฀experiences,฀
together฀with฀how฀confident฀individuals฀
are฀in฀using฀computers,฀affect฀their฀use฀
of฀the฀system.฀As฀a฀result,฀the฀following฀
hypothesis฀is฀posited:
H5:฀ The฀ students’฀ computer฀ efficacy฀ and฀ their฀ perception฀ of฀ system฀
interactivity฀ together฀ affect฀ their฀
effort฀ to฀ do฀ homework฀ using฀ the฀
online฀homework฀system.฀
Research฀Design฀and฀Method
Participants฀ were฀ 61฀ undergraduate฀ students฀ who฀ enrolled฀ in฀ financial฀
accounting฀ courses฀ and฀ volunteered฀ to฀
answer฀a฀short฀survey฀at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀
semester.฀ Students฀ were฀ familiar฀ with฀
the฀online฀homework฀system฀after฀using฀
it฀ for฀ a฀ full฀ semester.฀ Thus,฀ they฀ were฀
capable฀ of฀ answering฀ survey฀ questions฀
regarding฀the฀online฀homework฀system.฀
In฀ all,฀ 52฀ students฀ finished฀ the฀ survey฀
without฀ missing฀ information.฀ Students฀
did฀ not฀ receive฀ compensation฀ for฀ their฀
participation;฀ however,฀ they฀ were฀
informed฀about฀the฀importance฀of฀their฀
participation฀ in฀ completing฀ the฀ survey฀
(Maheswaran฀ &฀ Chaiken,฀ 1991).฀ The฀
demographics฀ of฀ students฀ completing฀
the฀survey฀appear฀in฀Table฀1.
Hypotheses฀Testing฀and฀Results
The฀proposed฀hypotheses฀were฀tested฀
using฀regression฀analysis.฀In฀the฀model,฀
to฀test฀factors฀affecting฀the฀effort฀exerted฀
on฀ homework,฀ the฀ dependent฀ variable฀
was฀ the฀ self-reported฀ amount฀ of฀ time฀
spent฀ on฀ homework฀ every฀ week฀ before฀
the฀ final฀ exam,฀ which฀ serves฀ as฀ a฀ surrogate฀of฀effort฀(Idson฀&฀Clark,฀1991).฀
The฀ independent฀ variables฀ were฀ the฀
NFC,฀the฀perceived฀system฀interactivity,฀
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265

TABLE฀1.฀Sample฀Descriptive฀Statistics
Variable฀

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 22:54 11 January 2016

Gender
฀ Male฀
฀ Female฀
Academic฀classification
฀ Freshman฀
฀ Sophomore฀
฀ Junior฀
฀ Senior฀
GPA฀
Age฀

n฀

%฀

32฀
20฀

61.5
38.5

1฀
17฀
22฀
11฀

1.9
32.7
42.3
21.2

M฀

SD

3.27฀
21.45฀

0.45
4.26

TABLE฀2.฀Results฀of฀Regression฀Analysis
Variable฀

M฀

Variable฀
฀ descriptive฀
฀ statistics฀
฀
฀ EFFORT฀
3.95฀
฀ NCOG฀
80.10฀
฀ INTER฀
67.90฀
฀ EFFI฀
73.27฀
Regression฀
฀ analysis฀
฀
฀ Constant฀
฀
฀ NCOG฀
฀
฀ INTER฀
฀
฀ EFFI฀
฀
฀ NCOG฀×฀INTER฀
฀
฀ EFFI฀×฀INTER฀
฀

SD฀

฀
3.33฀
17.10฀
18.59฀
16.94฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀

Estimate฀

฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
–2.552฀
–0.135฀
0.069฀
0.286฀
0.002฀
–0.004฀

SE฀

฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
9.227฀
0.069฀
0.134฀
0.115฀
0.001฀
0.002฀

t฀(df฀=฀5)฀

p

฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
฀
–0.277฀
–1.951฀
0.513฀
2.481฀
2.206฀
–2.627฀

.783
.057
.611
.017
.033
.012

Note.฀EFFORT฀=฀β0฀+฀β1฀NCOG฀+฀β2฀INTER฀+฀β3฀EFFI฀+฀β4฀NCOG฀×฀INTER฀+฀β5฀EFFI฀×฀
INTER฀+฀ε.฀For฀EFFORT,฀the฀scale฀used฀was฀a฀self-reported฀number฀of฀hours฀spent฀on฀homework฀per฀week;฀for฀NCOG,฀the฀scale฀used฀was฀J.฀T.฀Cacioppo,฀R.฀E.฀Petty,฀&฀C.฀F.฀Kao’s฀(1984)฀
18-item฀scale;฀for฀INTER,฀the฀scale฀used฀was฀S.฀J.฀McMillan฀&฀J.฀Hwang’s฀(2002)฀MPI฀Scale;฀
for฀EFEI,฀the฀scale฀used฀was฀D.฀R.฀Compeau฀&฀C.฀A.฀Higgins’s฀(1995)฀10-item฀scale.฀EFFORT฀
=฀students’฀effort฀to฀do฀homework;฀NCOG฀=฀need฀for฀cognition;฀INTER฀=฀perception฀of฀system฀
interactivity;฀EFEI฀=฀individual฀computer฀efficacy.

and฀participant’s฀computer฀efficacy.฀The฀
regression฀ model,฀ descriptive฀ statistics,฀
and฀ variable฀ descriptions฀ are฀ reported฀
in฀Table฀2.฀
H1฀ tests฀ the฀ effect฀ of฀ the฀ NFC฀ on฀
students’฀ effort฀ in฀ doing฀ homework.฀ I฀
measured฀the฀NFC฀using฀Cacioppo฀et฀
al.’s฀(1984)฀18-item฀survey฀instrument฀
(scale)฀ and฀ the฀ mean฀ score฀ among฀ 52฀
students฀was฀80.1฀(SD฀=฀17.1),฀which฀
is฀ similar฀ to฀ other฀ studies฀ using฀ this฀
scale฀ (Peltier฀ &฀ Schibrowsky,฀ 1994).฀
The฀ hypothesis฀ predicts฀ that฀ students฀
with฀ low฀ NFC฀ exert฀ more฀ effort฀ by฀
increasing฀their฀use฀of฀the฀system.฀The฀
output฀ from฀ the฀ regression฀ analysis฀
in฀ Table฀ 2฀ indicates฀ that฀ the฀ NFC฀ is฀
266฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

significant฀(p฀=฀.057),฀with฀a฀predicted฀
sign.฀As฀such,฀the฀data฀support฀the฀idea฀
that฀students฀with฀a฀low฀NFC฀increase฀
their฀ effort฀ toward฀ doing฀ homework฀
by฀using฀the฀online฀homework฀system.฀
Hence,฀H1฀is฀supported.฀
H2฀ posits฀ that฀ if฀ students฀ perceive฀
the฀ online฀ homework฀ system฀ to฀ be฀
interactive,฀ they฀ increase฀ their฀ effort฀
toward฀ doing฀ homework฀ by฀ using฀ the฀
system฀ more฀ frequently.฀ The฀ perceived฀
interactivity฀ was฀ measured฀ using฀ the฀
measures฀of฀perceived฀interactivity฀that฀
McMillan฀and฀Hwang฀(2002)฀developed.฀
The฀ scale฀ was฀ developed฀ originally฀
in฀ marketing฀ literature฀ to฀ measure฀ the฀
consumer฀ perception฀ of฀ the฀ Internet฀

advertising’s฀ interactivity.฀ This฀ scale฀
was฀ adopted฀ because฀ it฀ operationalized฀
the฀ perceived฀ interactivity฀ from฀ three฀
different฀ perspectives:฀ communication฀
(feedback),฀ time,฀ and฀ user฀ control.฀
These฀ are฀ similar฀ to฀ the฀ content฀ of฀ the฀
online฀ homework฀ system.฀ However,฀
the฀regression฀analysis฀showed฀that฀the฀
perceived฀interactivity฀has฀the฀predicted฀
sign,฀but฀it฀is฀not฀significant฀(p฀=฀.611).฀
The฀data฀collected฀failed฀to฀support฀H2.
Although฀ the฀ perceived฀ system฀
interactivity฀ was฀ not฀ significant,฀ the฀
interaction฀term฀in฀the฀regression฀model฀
reported฀ in฀ Table฀ 2฀ shows฀ that฀ system฀
interactivity฀ and฀ the฀ NFC฀ were฀ significant฀ (p฀ =฀ .033).฀ Students฀ with฀ a฀ low฀
NFC฀ used฀ the฀ homework฀ system฀ more฀
frequently฀ if฀ they฀ felt฀ that฀ the฀ system฀
was฀interactive.฀It฀is฀an฀interesting฀finding฀that฀suggests฀that฀the฀perception฀of฀
the฀online฀homework฀system฀is฀particularly฀important฀to฀explain฀students฀with฀
different฀cognitive฀needs฀and฀their฀effort฀
exerted฀doing฀homework.฀As฀a฀result,฀H3฀
was฀supported.
H4฀ posits฀ that฀ students’฀ computer฀
efficacy฀ affects฀ the฀ effort฀ needed฀ to฀ do฀
homework.฀ The฀ computer฀ efficacy฀ was฀
measured฀using฀an฀instrument฀Compeau฀
and฀ Higgins฀ (1995)฀ developed,฀ which฀
has฀ been฀ used฀ in฀ many฀ empirical฀ studies฀ in฀ the฀ IS฀ literature฀ (Hasan,฀ 2007;฀
Mort฀&฀Drennan,฀2007).฀The฀instrument฀
used฀ 10฀ questions฀ to฀ determine฀ confidence฀ level฀ in฀ using฀ various฀ software฀
troubleshooting฀ scenarios,฀ and฀ participants฀ responded฀ on฀ a฀ 10-point฀ Likerttype฀ scale฀ ranging฀ from฀ 1฀ (not฀ at฀ all฀
confident)฀to฀10฀(totally฀confident).฀The฀
results฀ of฀ the฀ regression฀ analysis฀ (see฀
Table฀2)฀showed฀that฀computer฀efficacy฀
significantly฀ affects฀ how฀ students฀ do฀
their฀homework฀using฀the฀online฀homework฀system฀(p฀=฀.017),฀with฀a฀predicted฀
sign.฀Hence,฀H4฀was฀supported.
H5฀ predicted฀ that฀ the฀ individual’s฀
computer฀ efficacy฀ interacts฀ with฀ the฀
system’s฀ perceived฀ interactivity฀ to฀
predict฀ the฀ effort฀ exerted฀ in฀ doing฀
homework.฀ Again,฀ the฀ regression฀
analysis฀reported฀in฀Table฀2฀shows฀that฀
this฀effect฀is฀significant฀(p฀=฀.012).฀The฀
data฀ suggests฀ that฀ if฀ students฀ who฀ are฀
low฀ in฀ self-assessed฀ computer฀ efficacy฀
perceive฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀ system฀
to฀be฀interactive฀in฀terms฀of฀time฀needed฀
to฀ complete฀ homework฀ and฀ flexible,฀

they฀ increase฀ their฀ efforts฀ to฀ complete฀
homework.฀In฀other฀words,฀the฀perceived฀
online฀homework฀system’s฀interactivity฀
can฀ be฀ important฀ in฀ determining฀ effort฀
to฀do฀homework฀for฀those฀who฀are฀less฀
comfortable฀with฀using฀computers.

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 22:54 11 January 2016

Conclusion฀and฀Discussion
Although฀ increasingly฀ more฀ educational฀ technologies฀ are฀ experimented฀ with฀ in฀ traditional฀ college฀ classes,฀
the฀ effect฀ of฀ using฀ these฀ technologies฀
on฀ student฀ behavior฀ receives฀ little฀ or฀
no฀ attention฀ from฀ educators.฀ In฀ general,฀ educators฀ and฀ system฀ developers฀
assume฀ that฀ students฀ will฀ be฀ better฀ off฀
because฀of฀the฀technology฀implementation.฀ In฀ the฀ present฀ study,฀ I฀ tested฀ this฀
hidden฀assumption฀by฀investigating฀the฀
impact฀of฀students’฀individual฀differences฀and฀their฀perception฀of฀the฀system฀on฀
their฀effort฀to฀do฀accounting฀homework.฀
The฀primary฀contribution฀of฀the฀present฀
study฀was฀finding฀the฀various฀effects฀that฀
students’฀individual฀differences฀have฀on฀
their฀effort฀to฀do฀homework.
Overall,฀ the฀ results฀ highlight฀ the฀
importance฀ of฀ continued฀ research฀ on฀
new฀ technology฀ implementation฀ in฀ the฀
educational฀setting฀and฀individuals’฀differences.฀The฀ findings฀ presented฀ in฀ the฀
present฀article฀provide฀an฀example฀of฀an฀
expectation฀gap฀between฀system฀implementer฀and฀system฀users.฀The฀instructor฀
who฀adopts฀an฀online฀homework฀system฀
expects฀students฀to฀benefit฀from฀the฀system฀by฀working฀on฀homework฀problems฀
more.฀ However,฀ as฀ the฀ results฀ show,฀
low-NFC฀students฀use฀the฀online฀homework฀ system฀ more฀ than฀ do฀ high-NFC฀
students.฀ The฀ availability฀ of฀ the฀ online฀
homework฀ system฀ seems฀ to฀ provide฀ a฀
shortcut฀for฀students฀who฀are฀less฀motivated฀ to฀ complete฀ required฀ homework.฀
Consistent฀with฀previous฀research,฀how฀
students฀feel฀about฀their฀computer฀abilities฀ also฀ has฀ a฀ significant฀ impact฀ on฀
their฀effort฀to฀do฀homework.฀It฀provides฀
even฀stronger฀evidence฀that฀individuals’฀
differences฀must฀be฀considered฀when฀an฀
online฀homework฀system฀is฀used.
Understanding฀ how฀ users฀ perceive฀
the฀system’s฀features฀and฀their฀response฀
by฀ actually฀ using฀ the฀ system฀ has฀ been฀
a฀ research฀ topic฀ for฀ a฀ long฀ time.฀ The฀
present฀ study฀ did฀ not฀ find฀ supporting฀
evidence฀that฀the฀perceived฀interactivity฀
฀

affects฀effort฀to฀do฀homework.฀However,฀
it฀does฀suggest฀that฀providing฀feedback฀
instantly฀ and฀ interacting฀ with฀ system฀
users฀ should฀ be฀ considered฀ with฀ individual฀user฀characteristics฀(such฀as฀NFC฀
and฀ computer฀ efficacy)฀ to฀ be฀ meaningful฀ when฀ effectiveness฀ of฀ an฀ online฀
homework฀system฀is฀considered.฀
From฀ the฀ system฀ implementers’฀ perspective,฀professors฀use฀the฀online฀homework฀ system฀ to฀ promote฀ learning,฀ with฀
the฀assumption฀that฀the฀online฀homework฀
system฀can฀encourage฀students฀to฀practice฀
accounting฀problems฀more.฀However,฀the฀
results฀ of฀ the฀ present฀ study฀ show฀ that฀
is฀ not฀ necessarily฀ true.฀ Some฀ types฀ of฀
students฀ increase฀ their฀ homework฀ effort฀
seemingly฀ because฀ of฀ the฀ shortcut฀ provided฀by฀the฀system,฀instead฀of฀using฀the฀
system฀ to฀ learn.฀ It฀ would฀ be฀ interesting฀
to฀ further฀ study฀ how฀ low-NFC฀ students฀
learn฀ because฀ of฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀
system,฀not฀just฀how฀they฀use฀it.฀In฀other฀
words,฀a฀future฀study฀should฀incorporate฀
learning฀outcome฀variables฀to฀investigate฀
whether฀ technology฀ used฀ can฀ actually฀
promote฀learning.฀฀
As฀ results฀ from฀ the฀ present฀ study฀
show,฀ whereas฀ some฀ students฀ may฀ be฀
motivated฀ to฀ do฀ accounting฀ homework฀
with฀or฀without฀the฀support฀of฀the฀online฀
homework฀ system,฀ other฀ students฀ need฀
more฀feedback฀in฀this฀process,฀which฀is฀
provided฀ by฀ the฀ system.฀ Thus,฀ instructors฀ should฀ not฀ assume฀ that฀ students฀
would฀ benefit฀ equally฀ from฀ an฀ online฀
homework฀system฀in฀an฀educational฀setting.฀ It฀ is฀ important฀ to฀ consider฀ versatility฀ in฀ program฀ design฀ to฀ allow฀ for฀
more฀support฀at฀each฀individual’s฀level.฀
To฀ achieve฀ this฀ goal,฀ the฀ present฀ study฀
provides฀ some฀ factors฀ that฀ should฀ be฀
considered฀ when฀ assessing฀ the฀ effectiveness฀of฀an฀online฀homework฀system.฀
For฀example,฀an฀online฀homework฀system฀can฀help฀students฀with฀low฀intrinsic฀
motivation฀ and฀ students฀ who฀ are฀ not฀
comfortable฀ with฀ computer฀ technologies,฀ if฀ they฀ perceive฀ the฀ online฀ homework฀system฀to฀be฀advantageous฀to฀their฀
learning.฀ This฀ mechanism฀ can฀ be฀ used฀
to฀support฀the฀development฀of฀programs฀
that฀ can฀ be฀ tailored฀ to฀ students฀ with฀
different฀ cognitive฀ styles.฀ As฀ a฀ result,฀
from฀ the฀ system฀ developers’฀ perspective,฀an฀online฀homework฀system฀cannot฀
just฀ consider฀ interactivity฀ as฀ providing฀
instant฀ feedback฀ (as฀ many฀ vendors฀ do)฀

to฀system฀users:฀Developers฀should฀also฀
consider฀ user฀ interface฀ design฀ so฀ that฀
system฀users฀do฀not฀feel฀frustrated.฀System฀ interface฀ design฀ is฀ an฀ important฀
issue฀to฀address฀to฀increase฀system฀user฀
acceptance฀(Thong,฀Hong,฀&฀Tam,฀2004)฀
or฀even฀to฀ease฀cognitive฀burden฀(Rose,฀
Douglas,฀ &฀ Rose,฀ 2004).฀ For฀ example,฀
an฀ intuitive฀ interface฀ design฀ that฀ aims฀
to฀ reduce฀ user฀ cognitive฀ load฀ can฀ help฀
students฀who฀are฀less฀comfortable฀with฀
computers฀ and฀ who฀ are฀ less฀ motivated฀
to฀ work฀ on฀ homework฀ problems.฀ This฀
is฀ especially฀ important฀ when฀ increasingly฀ more฀ Web-based฀ instructional฀
approaches฀are฀being฀used฀and฀students฀
come฀ from฀ more฀ diverse฀ backgrounds฀
(Chen฀&฀Macredie,฀2004).
As฀in฀similar฀studies,฀my฀research฀is฀
not฀ free฀ from฀ limitations.฀ The฀ factors฀
investigated฀ in฀ the฀ present฀ article฀ are฀
by฀ no฀ means฀ exhaustive.฀ Further฀ studies฀have฀to฀be฀undertaken฀with฀a฀larger฀
sample฀to฀provide฀more฀evidence.฀Some฀
findings฀ have฀ to฀ be฀ interpreted฀ with฀
caution.฀Though฀derived฀from฀data฀collected฀from฀students฀in฀the฀same฀instructor’s฀ class,฀ the฀ results฀ of฀ the฀ present฀
study฀may฀not฀be฀able฀to฀be฀generalized฀
to฀ other฀ accounting฀ courses.฀ Furthermore,฀ the฀ present฀ article฀ sheds฀ some฀
light฀on฀how฀an฀educational฀technology฀
can฀affect฀the฀process฀variables฀instead฀
of฀ outcome฀ variables฀ of฀ student฀ learning.฀Future฀studies฀need฀to฀take฀a฀closer฀
look฀ at฀ the฀ affect฀ of฀ online฀ homework฀
systems฀ on฀ student฀ learning฀ outcomes,฀
such฀ as฀ exam฀ performance,฀ amount฀ of฀
learning,฀ and฀ student฀ problem-solving฀
abilities฀(Peters฀et฀al.,฀2002;฀Rayburn฀&฀
Rayburn,฀1999).฀
NOTE
Jacob฀ C.฀ Peng฀ is฀ an฀ assistant฀ professor฀ of฀
accounting.฀His฀research฀interests฀focus฀on฀behavioral฀research฀when฀information฀technologies฀are฀
used฀ to฀ support฀ accounting฀ decision฀ making฀ and฀
technology฀implications฀in฀business฀education.฀
Correspondence฀ concerning฀ this฀ article฀ should฀
be฀ addressed฀ to฀ Jacob฀ C.฀ Peng,฀ 303฀ E.฀ Kearsley฀
Street,฀Flint,฀MI฀48502,฀USA.
E-mail:฀jcpeng@umflint.edu

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APPENDIX
Example฀Interactive฀Problem
Problem:฀How฀am฀I฀doing?
On฀January฀1,฀2007,฀Shay฀issues฀$700,000฀of฀10%,฀15-year฀bonds฀at฀973⁄4%฀of฀the฀original฀market฀value.฀Six฀years฀later,฀on฀January฀1,฀2013,฀
Steadman฀retires฀20%฀of฀these฀bonds฀by฀buying฀them฀on฀the฀open฀market฀at฀1041⁄2%฀of฀the฀original฀market฀value.฀All฀interest฀is฀accounted฀
for฀and฀paid฀through฀December฀31,฀2012,฀the฀day฀before฀the฀purchase.฀The฀straight-line฀method฀is฀used฀to฀amortize฀any฀bond฀discount.
Required:
1.฀How฀much฀does฀the฀company฀receive฀when฀it฀issues฀the฀bonds฀on฀January฀1,฀2007?
2.฀What฀is฀the฀amount฀of฀the฀discount฀on฀the฀bonds฀at฀January฀1,฀2007?
3.฀How฀much฀amortization฀of฀the฀discount฀is฀recorded฀on฀the฀bonds฀for฀the฀entire฀period฀from฀January฀1,฀2007฀to฀December฀31,฀2012?
4.฀What฀is฀the฀carrying฀(book)฀value฀of฀the฀bonds฀as฀of฀the฀close฀of฀business฀on฀December฀31,฀2012?฀What฀is฀the฀carrying฀value฀of฀the฀
20%฀soon-to-be-retired฀bonds฀on฀this฀same฀date?
5.฀How฀much฀did฀the฀company฀pay฀on฀January฀1,฀2013฀to฀purchase฀the฀bonds฀that฀it฀retired?
6.฀What฀is฀the฀amount฀of฀the฀recorded฀gain฀or฀loss฀from฀retiring฀the฀bonds?
7.฀Prepare฀the฀journal฀entry฀to฀record฀the฀bond฀retirement฀at฀January฀1,฀2013.
Note.฀This฀is฀a฀corporate฀bond฀issuance฀and฀retirement฀problem.฀Many฀students฀have฀problems฀conceptualizing฀bond฀discount฀and฀bond฀carrying฀value.฀The฀
same฀problem฀presented฀in฀the฀online฀homework฀system฀would฀show฀each฀of฀seven฀steps฀to฀solve฀the฀problem฀one฀at฀a฀time.฀When฀students฀answer฀each฀
step฀of฀the฀problem,฀if฀allowed฀by฀the฀instructor,฀a฀link฀to฀the฀content฀area฀would฀appear฀so฀that฀students฀enhance฀their฀understanding฀about฀a฀particular฀
portion฀of฀the฀solution฀process.฀Any฀time฀that฀students฀click฀“How฀am฀I฀doing?”฀the฀system฀responds฀with฀feedback฀about฀their฀current฀performance.฀Students฀have฀the฀option฀of฀continuing฀with฀the฀problem฀or฀saving฀the฀progress฀for฀later.฀Note฀that฀some฀numbers฀can฀be฀changed฀each฀time฀that฀students฀log฀
in฀to฀work฀on฀the฀problem.฀For฀example,฀the฀bond-issuing฀price฀(973⁄4%฀in฀this฀example)฀can฀be฀different฀so฀that฀the฀students฀get฀a฀new฀problem฀to฀work฀
with.฀Also,฀if฀a฀journal฀entry฀is฀needed฀(e.g.,฀Requirement฀7),฀a฀drop-down฀menu฀appears฀so฀that฀students฀may฀select฀from฀the฀list฀(or฀refer฀to฀the฀content฀
area฀for฀a฀more฀detailed฀explanation).

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Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business