An analysis of the determinants of student email use

Abstract

This article uses survey data from different economic principles courses to examine two related questions. First, the impact of certain variables is analyzed, including both student-specific characteristics and those of the student’s economic principles course, regarding the frequency of e-mail use. Second, the article considers whether students view e-mail as a substitute for or complement to other methods of contacting faculty. No matter the frequency of use, email appears to be a viable substitute. Only infrequent users, however, appear to view e-mail as a complement to existing means of contact.