Defining and exploring online engagement fatigue in a university context

This paper seeks to define online engagement fatigue. The need for a definition is twofold. First, the increased reliance on the internet for the full delivery of higher education courses could result in online engagement fatigue. Second, a clear definition is required for the theoretical construct of online engagement fatigue to ensure meaningful research and to advance knowledge. Thus, the challenge is to understand what online engagement fatigue is and what are its consequences for students and educators. A social constructionist approach was used to develop an emergent definition of online engagement fatigue, which was then refined through a qualitative exploration of how it is perceived by students and educators. The perceptions that students and educators hold about online engagement fatigue were collected through interviews with 18 students and ten educators. There were differences in how the students and educators perceived online engagement fatigue, with students more likely to confirm its existence and more likely to render examples of its effect. A refined definition is offered which gives a basis upon which future research can investigate this phenomenon in divergent settings.