Comparing a text- and visual-based interface presenting social information in an online environment

An experiment is presented which compares a text-and a visual-based interface to an online course in terms of how the students perceive the social information. The objective of the visual-based interface is to enhance the degree of satisfaction and social presence perceived by the students. Relationships between the number of interactions and perceived social presence are examined. The results indicate that a visual-based interface might increase the number of interactions. In addition, the results suggest that the degree of social presence might be stronger for those students who post more messages. These findings have implications for designing online courses where the interface may play an important role in enhancing social presence