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<p>Academic cyberloafing, defined as the involvement in non-academic online activities during academic tasks, has emerged as a prevalent concern within higher education. While previous research has identified course-related factors that may influence academic cyberloafing, the specific relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing remains underexplored. To address this gap, five studies (<i>N</i> = 1118) were conducted to investigate the relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing and the mediating role of learning engagement among Chinese college students. Study 1 employed a questionnaire to investigate the U-shaped relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing. Study 2, utilizing an experimental design, further confirmed this U-shaped relation. Studies 3 and 4 demonstrated learning engagement mediated the relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing through scenario-based experiments. Finally, Study 5 reinforced these findings by manipulating perceived course difficulty within a real classroom setting, providing additional support for the mediating role of learning engagement. The results emphasize the critical role of students’ engagement with course content in influencing their likelihood of engaging in academic cyberloafing, particularly when the perceived course difficulty is moderate. Taken together, the findings have implications for teachers’ course design and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of academic cyberloafing in classrooms.</p>

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Moderation is the key: taking too easy or too hard courses increases academic cyberloafing

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年4月2日

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  • Zien Ding,
  • Ru-De Liu,
  • Yi Ding,
  • Xiantong Yang,
  • Yi Yang

摘要

Academic cyberloafing, defined as the involvement in non-academic online activities during academic tasks, has emerged as a prevalent concern within higher education. While previous research has identified course-related factors that may influence academic cyberloafing, the specific relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing remains underexplored. To address this gap, five studies (N = 1118) were conducted to investigate the relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing and the mediating role of learning engagement among Chinese college students. Study 1 employed a questionnaire to investigate the U-shaped relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing. Study 2, utilizing an experimental design, further confirmed this U-shaped relation. Studies 3 and 4 demonstrated learning engagement mediated the relation between perceived course difficulty and academic cyberloafing through scenario-based experiments. Finally, Study 5 reinforced these findings by manipulating perceived course difficulty within a real classroom setting, providing additional support for the mediating role of learning engagement. The results emphasize the critical role of students’ engagement with course content in influencing their likelihood of engaging in academic cyberloafing, particularly when the perceived course difficulty is moderate. Taken together, the findings have implications for teachers’ course design and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of academic cyberloafing in classrooms.