Students enrolled in public relations and mass communication courses taught at two medium-sized universities in the United States of America participated in a survey that examined student e-mail use and factors that impact it. Respondents most often reported using e-mail to ask instructors questions about assignments and reported contacting parents via e-mail least. Results also indicated that students enjoyed using e-mail to communicate with a male instructor over a female instructor, and female students were most likely to contact a male instructor via e-mail. The study also looked at year in school and preferences for face-to-face communication to determine if they had an impact on using e-mail.  Suggestions are made for future research in this area.

Key Words: E-Mail, Technology, Gender

^JCMRJournal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 1, No. 2, October 2009, 1 – 11. 

About the authors

*Bradford L. Yates, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Mass Communications, University of West Georgia, Department of Mass Communications & Theatre Arts, 1601 Maple Street, Carrollton, GA 30118-4400, U.S.A.

**Brigitta R. Brunner, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Communication & Journalism, 217 Tichenor Hall, Auburn University, AL 36849-5211, U.S.A.

Full Article

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Pages: 11

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Article Citation

Yates, B. L. & Brunner, B. R. (2009): Impact of gender and other determinants on students’ use of e-mail communication. Journal of Communication and Media Research 1(2): 1 – 11