| This study utilized a data set consisting of 6,151 cases of community college students intending on transferring to four-year institutions who completed the Community College Student Experiences Questionnaire from June 1999 through October 2000. Based on Pace's (1984a) theory that the quality of the students' effort is the best predictor of perceived gains, analyses were conducted using scores on the Technology scale, the Faculty scale, the Course Activities scale, the Writing scale, the Science Activities scale, and selected Background, Work and Family information.;Three variables, Quality of Effort in Computer Technology, Quality of Effort in Library Activities, and Quality of Effort in Writing Activities, were found to have a significant impact on students' perceptions of Gain in Information Technology.;The study affirms the work of C. Robert Pace in asserting that background variables such as Age, Gender, Affect of Family on College Work and Affect of Job on College Work had less effect on perceived gains than did the effort the students invested. The findings reported here support and confirm Pace's concept of Quality of Effort by establishing a relationship between students' investment of effort in technology and their perceptions of gains in that area. |
