Exploring master’s students’ experiences of using digital technologies in research.

Abstract

Digital technologies are used by people in order to attend to 21st century living, which often involves digitalised practices. These digitalised practices are driven by the need to meet the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technology innovation, demanding the growing use of digital technologies for various activities. As a result of the 4IR movement, institutions of higher learning use digital technologies for teaching, learning, and research purposes, to fulfil educational objectives. Particularly for postgraduate studies, students use digital technologies to access published research, generate empirical data, write their dissertations and communicate with their supervisors and other stakeholders involved in their research studies. Literature reviewed in this study indicated that students experience the use of digital technologies in specific ways informed by various socialisation and professionalisation processes. This study explored master’s students’ experiences of using digital technologies as informed by their personal research needs; thus, producing a unique personalisation experience which has been found to be missing in literature discussion. Guided by the philosophical pragmatic paradigm, this doctoral study used a qualitative case study to explore master’s students’ experiences of using digital technologies for research purposes. Data were generated using four research methods, including reflective journals, semi-structured interviews, focus-group discussions, and digital observations. Purposive and snowball sampling were used to select fourteen participants who were part of the study, and who aided in generating thick and authentic data used to answer the research questions. Three key research questions were formulated for this study mainly: What are master’s students’ experiences of using digital technologies? (descriptive); How do master’s students apply their experiences of using digital technologies in research? (operational); and Why do master’s students experience digital technologies in particular ways? (philosophical/theoretical). The data produced were analysed and interpreted using inductive (thematic) analysis, in combination with deductive analysis (using the Persona-Tech analytical framework proposed in this study). The Persona-Tech analytical framework was conceptualised using selected concepts from CHAT and UTAUT theories, in order to better understand students’ experiences of using digital technologies in research. The findings of this study indicated that participants experienced the use of digital technologies both in positive and negative ways, influenced by various factors such as socialisation, professionalisation and personalisation. These influences further shaped how the students conducted their master's research using different digital resources on a mandatory and voluntary basis. Furthermore, the findings suggested that master's students used their socialisation and professionalisation experiences to solve problems and better understand the use of digital technologies in their studies, resulting in a unique personalisation experience informed by their study needs. The study recommends five propositions that could aid in students achieving quality personalisation experience with regards to using digital technologies effectively for their studies. These five propositions include students reflecting on their experience with digital technologies and finding ways to improve their experience; forming collaborations with other stakeholders and seeking ways to tackle challenges experienced with digital technologies; having patience and enduring through a challenging experience; seeking guidance, support and information where deemed necessary and being self-aware of one’s digital strengths and weaknesses.