Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia

The purpose of this study was to determine the impacts of service quality, student satisfaction and personal factors on student intention to complete study in open distance learning (ODL) institutions. A cross-sectional survey design was employed in this study. Data was collected during the perio...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ng, Man San
Format: Thesis
Published: 2010
Subjects:
Online Access:https://library.oum.edu.my/repository/570/
_version_ 1848801474796060672
author Ng, Man San
author_facet Ng, Man San
author_sort Ng, Man San
building OUM Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description The purpose of this study was to determine the impacts of service quality, student satisfaction and personal factors on student intention to complete study in open distance learning (ODL) institutions. A cross-sectional survey design was employed in this study. Data was collected during the period from October to December, 2009 from a nation-wide random sample of 450 Open University Malaysia (OUM) undergraduate students. Several statistical techniques were used to analyse the data and they include producing frequency counts for generating descriptive statistics. In addition, factor analysis was used to identify and confirm the factors of service quality, student satisfaction and student retention. Multivariate analysis was also used for testing hypotheses and measuring the impacts of factors on student retention. The study findings based on 342 usable questionnaires indicated that service quality and its four dimensions (tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, and assurance) had positive impacts on overall satisfaction. However, the empathy dimension did not have any effect. Five factors were found to have effects on student intention to complete study in OUM. They were: student satisfaction, goal commitment, family support, study habits and number of semesters attended. However, service quality had no effect. The findings indicated that low student retention in ODL institutions was attributed not only to student satisfaction but also to a combination of personal factors. It follows that the key to an effective retention strategy is for ODL institutions to provide quality support services that meet the satisfaction of the students. Additionally, ODL institutions should help the students to overcome their personal problems. (Abstract by author)
first_indexed 2025-11-14T21:08:02Z
format Thesis
id oai:eprints.oum.edu.my:570
institution Open University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T21:08:02Z
publishDate 2010
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling oai:eprints.oum.edu.my:5702021-06-01T07:03:47Z Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia Ng, Man San LC5201 Education extension. Adult education. Continuing education LC5800 Distance education The purpose of this study was to determine the impacts of service quality, student satisfaction and personal factors on student intention to complete study in open distance learning (ODL) institutions. A cross-sectional survey design was employed in this study. Data was collected during the period from October to December, 2009 from a nation-wide random sample of 450 Open University Malaysia (OUM) undergraduate students. Several statistical techniques were used to analyse the data and they include producing frequency counts for generating descriptive statistics. In addition, factor analysis was used to identify and confirm the factors of service quality, student satisfaction and student retention. Multivariate analysis was also used for testing hypotheses and measuring the impacts of factors on student retention. The study findings based on 342 usable questionnaires indicated that service quality and its four dimensions (tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, and assurance) had positive impacts on overall satisfaction. However, the empathy dimension did not have any effect. Five factors were found to have effects on student intention to complete study in OUM. They were: student satisfaction, goal commitment, family support, study habits and number of semesters attended. However, service quality had no effect. The findings indicated that low student retention in ODL institutions was attributed not only to student satisfaction but also to a combination of personal factors. It follows that the key to an effective retention strategy is for ODL institutions to provide quality support services that meet the satisfaction of the students. Additionally, ODL institutions should help the students to overcome their personal problems. (Abstract by author) 2010-10 Thesis NonPeerReviewed text https://library.oum.edu.my/repository/570/1/Msc_%28BA%29_thesis__Ng_Man_San.pdf Ng, Man San (2010) Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia. Masters thesis, Open University Malaysia. https://library.oum.edu.my/repository/570/
spellingShingle LC5201 Education extension. Adult education. Continuing education
LC5800 Distance education
Ng, Man San
Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title_full Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title_fullStr Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title_full_unstemmed Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title_short Impacts Of Service Quality, Satisfaction And Personal Factors On Student Retention In Open Distance Learning Institutions In Malaysia
title_sort impacts of service quality, satisfaction and personal factors on student retention in open distance learning institutions in malaysia
topic LC5201 Education extension. Adult education. Continuing education
LC5800 Distance education
url https://library.oum.edu.my/repository/570/