Antecedentes e consequências de satisfação dos alunos de graduação com o EAD: um estudo de caso na Unisinos

Abstract

Private undergraduation education in Brazil, regarding e-learning, has had great growing through last years. Because of the increasing number of new students and new Institutions, Institutions themselves have been worried to evaluate their students´ satisfaction for this method. In Marketing, satisfaction and all its surroundings in terms of background and consequences satisfaction has been one of the most researched and discussed topics. This dissertation, through a case study, aimed at identifying and analising background and consequences of student´s satisfaction in undergraduation courses, developed based on the e-learning method at Unisinos. For this purpose, the research adopted the ACSI conceptual model (Índice de Satisfação do Consumidor), which presents the quality, the expectations and the right value as backgrounds of satisfaction just like its immediate consequences, loyalty and complaints. In order to adapt indicators from this model to the e-learning context researched, the research methodology passed by three main steps: in the first one, which has an exploratory character, qualitative data were collected with managers, professors and students. Besides, a theoretical revision was made. After data collection, first indicators were reached. The focus of the second phase was the descriptive and qualitative data, which aimed at testing the indicators in the previous phase and measure background and consequences of satisfaction, analising the relation among the elements which built the indicators. In the third phase, again in an exploratory focus, quantitative results from the previous phase were analised by a group in a qualitative focus. Questionnaires summed more than 500 questions and more than 850 minutes of recordings from groups and interviews. From the results of the research, it was possible to analise the model ACSI by the use of the technique called Structural Equation Modeling, in which the results demonstrated how valid the elements of building were as well as their background and consequence indicators of satisfaction related to e-learning. The analysis indicate that satisfaction is related striclty to quality which is related to professors, learning and interaction. Rates of high satisfaction resulted in higher loyalty, which means the rate of permanence in an Institution. Future studies may be reapplied by the use of the same method, allowing new comparatives of these results.