Social Connectedness and Online Design Learning Experience in the Indian Context

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by nayy☆

The study examines how students across design schools in India experience online courses and virtual classrooms and how these environments shape perceived social connectedness with peers and educators. Using a mixed-methods design, ninety-five anonymized responses from five design schools were analyzed through quantitative and qualitative collection. The findings identify factors influencing felt connectedness, including visibility, classroom interaction, course interest, and subject understanding, along with participant explanations and reported benefits and gaps compared with face-to-face learning.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Social connectedness and its theoretical foundations

Social connectedness in design education

Empathy and user-centred design

Online education needs and social connectedness online

Social Connectedness and Online Design Learning Experience in the Indian Context Christy Vivek Gogu, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India Jyoti Kumar, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India Abstract The rise in online courses and virtual learning avenues in the last few decades, and more recently the Covid-19 pandemic has seen traditional design schools imparting learning seamlessly by transitioning to the virtual realm partially or completely. This study helps understand the perspective of students from various design schools across India regarding their learning experience in online courses, virtual classrooms and their perceived social connectedness with peers and educators. We report findings from a mixed-methods study, which combined both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis, wherein ninetyfive students from five design schools across India responded anonymously to the online questionnaire survey. We assessed the factors that impacted perceived social connectedness of the students with their educators and peers in online classes. We also discuss some of the reasons for this perception, as articulated by the participants, and report a significant correlation found between felt connectedness and various factors in online learning, such as visibility of participants, level of interaction during class, interest in course and understanding of the subject. It was observed that while the target student group seemed adept in online interaction and exchange of information, their feedback on online learning revealed unique insights into aspects that affect overall experience of design education. In addition, we submit some of the features or elements of traditional face-to-face (F2F) classrooms that students miss the most in the current online setting and some of the measures taken by students and educators to stay connected and overcome the virtual gap in learning. Keywords Online design learning, social connectedness, design education, virtual learning, online class behaviour, behaviour design Introduction Social interactions are essential for human physical and psychological well-being. Social connectedness, which has been characterized as one of the main motivating principles behind social behaviour, is usually considered as a predictor of a successful life and it has been associated with many social and health-related benefits (Riedl, Köbler, Goswami, & Krcmar, 2013; Smith & Mackie, 2000) . Van Bel, et al. arrived at the concept of Social Connectedness and defined it as ‘a short-term experience of belonging and relatedness, based on quantitative and qualitative social appraisals, and relationship salience’(Bel, Smolders, Ijsselsteijn, & De Kort, 2009) . The social connectedness construct has evolved out of the study of belongingness (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Lee & Robbins, 1995) . According to belongingness theory, people tend to develop and continue positive social relationships so as to experience a sense of belongingness. Social connectedness is also defined as a personal sense of belonging to a group, family, or community. For the purposes of their doctoral research, the author would like to define Social Connectedness as ‘the experience of belonging and relatedness between people’. While the concepts, effects and benefits of social connectedness have been well researched in the social sciences and psychology scholarship, there is a lack of published research regarding social connectedness of students in traditional face to face college environments, which is instrumental in their learning and deep comprehension (Nortvig, Petersen, & Balle, 2018; Anastasiades, Filippousis, Karvunis, Siakas, Tomazinakis, Giza, Mastoraki, 2009) . More so for design education which thrives on group work, collaboration, peer critique, building on eachother’s ideas, etc. The design process itself is highly collaborative in nature, involving not just designers but specialists from multi-discipl

FAQs

What does the study investigate about online design learning in India?

It investigates students’ learning experiences in online courses and virtual classrooms, and how these relate to their perceived social connectedness with peers and educators.

How was social connectedness assessed in the study?

Through a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative and qualitative data from ninety-five anonymous student responses across five design schools.

Which factors were found to correlate with students’ felt connectedness in online learning?

The study reports a significant correlation between felt connectedness and factors such as participant visibility, interaction level during class, interest in the course, and understanding of the subject.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by nayy☆