“The fact that it was online did have a significant impact”: a qualitative exploration of psychology students’ perceptions of learning research methods and statistics across different modalities

Research has shown the negative impact of statistics anxiety on subsequent academic performance. Given that statistics competence is a core component of psychology at degree level across the UK, there is a clear need to explore alternative approaches to the teaching of such courses, such as via online delivery. The current paper reports on a study which investigated perceptions of online versus face-to-face quantitative research methods. Three focus groups were conducted with 13 undergraduate psychology students from one Scottish university, with a resultant thematic analysis identifying themes of 1) The dual function of the computer screen, and 2) Responsibility for engagement. These findings highlighted that although students recognised the benefits of the subject being taught online, there was a general preference for traditional, face-to-face teaching. They also identified the primary issues with engagement and motivation for learning online and detailed how such online approaches could be improved. Findings highlighted the value of online resources that can be used to complement face-to-face teaching.