BLOGGING: A NEW THREAT TO STUDENT RESEARCH? Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning, Volume 30, 2003 BLOGGING: A NEW THREAT TO STUDENT RESEARCH? Martin Hornyak University of West Florida mhornyak@uwf.edu Brian Peach University of West Florida bpeach@uwf.edu Mick Fekula Breneu University fekulamj@hotmail.com ABSTRACT With the recent history of “one-time respected” organizations like Enron, Merrill Lynch, Global Crossings, and the behavior of other organizations, postsecondary education institutions are being questioned if subjects like ethics are being taught or researched in present day colleges. Today’s college instructors often feel at “professional risk” in dealing with the ever-changing face of our craft. For example, plagiarism is a rising plague in the education and research arena for both students and educators. Now, a new concept called “blogging” is growing and challenging the basic tenets of doing good student research. Should we be concerned? This session examines what blogging is and what are its implications for student research and our educational system. Key words: Blogging, Research, Ethics Introduction This session discusses a new potential threat to education that can be affecting student research in education today. Have you ever looked at the reference sections of student research papers recently? If you have, one sees a proliferation of references to sites taken directly off of the web. It is wonderful to think the student may be searching and discovering deeper knowledge on the subject topic. However, have you ever thought about the concept of blogging? Our expectation is for students doing research on any topic to use reliable sources of information. Students must cite the sources and make sure the information comes from a credible source. The student is also expected to ethically perform research by providing information that is truthful and meaningful. Unfortunately, the Internet has already been marked as having problems with the reliability of information and if it is credible. Now the issue of blogging needs to be examined and discussed. Blogging Blogging is a phenomenon that could revolutionize and impact how research is being conducted today. As it began around 1994, it could be characterized as nothing more than some online diaries containing inspired writing. Tweney (2002) describes blogging “as a vehicle for personal expression because it is an easy way to capture, comment on, and keep abreast of interesting bits of information.” Generally to blog, one may see something interesting on the web and in seconds you can link it on your weblog, add comments, and then be on to something else. Weblogs, or blogs for short, are web pages constructed through using electronic publishing tools and are heavy on opinion and that link to other Web pages to support their ideas (Foley, 2002). However, many different types of blogs exist today. Blogs can be categorized into two basic types: personal blogs and portal-type blogs. Personal blogs are written primarily by a single person and can range from articulate essays to “trivial thought bubbles.” (Foley, 2002) Portal- like blogs can serve to aggregate content by offering links to personal blogs, news stories, discussion threads, and other electronic content (Foley, 2002). Other portal blogs are seen as tech blogs, sex blogs, news blogs, drug blogs, sites packed with links, quips, ideas, and arguments that just months ago were the near monopoly of news outlets and traditional journalism. As Andrew Sullivan of Wired warns this year, the danger with blogs is that they are personal and driven by the writer of each piece of information (Sullivan, 2002). 131 mailto:mhornyak@uwf.edu mailto:bpeach@uwf.edu mailto:fekulamj@hotmail.com Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning, Volume 30, 2003 QUESTIONS FOR EDUCATORS Who does the review and editing of blog documents being offered to anyone with net access? What credibility do these articles offer? Are they appropriately researched? Does this information come from legitimate sources? What does this new “blog source of information” mean for educators and researchers? Does this “muddy the waters” for class assignments? Questions about the nature of blogging will be addressed within this interactive session. Is it credible for use in research? Is it reliable and useful? Finally are blog sources ethical to use? Is blogging a publishing revolution that can have more impact than anything since the printing press? If this revolution becomes reality, how does education and research embrace it? It is being seen that there is a widening group of Web devotees who think they, through the power of their own observations and unfiltered analysis, can provide better a alternative to the traditional media (Foley, 2002). As Andrew Sullivan (2202) suggests the “blogger” could be to words what Napster was to music. Are faculty and students ready for future research? REFERENCES Foley, John (2002) “Are you blogging yet?” www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArticle?doc _id=IWK20020719S0001 Sullivan, Andrew (2002) “The blogging revolution.” www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.05/mustread.html Tweney, Dylan (2002) “Blogging for dollars.” www.business2.com/articles/web/print/0,1650,43097,00 .html 132 http://www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArticle?doc_id=IWK20020719S0001 http://www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArticle?doc_id=IWK20020719S0001 http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.05/mustread.html http://www.business2.com/articles/web/print/0,1650,43097,00.html http://www.business2.com/articles/web/print/0,1650,43097,00.html Table of Contents Volume 30, 2003 The Optimal Timing For Introducing Business Simulations Can Handicapped Students Access Your Class Web Site? The Competition Game: Decision Making In A Dynamic Environment Pan-Pacific Enterprises: Strategic Decision Making Simulation Study Of Stochastic Channel Redistribution The Impact Of Business War Games: Quantifying Training Effectiveness Experiential Learning: Introducing Faculty And Staff To A University Leadership Development Program The Feasibility Of The Balanced Scorecard For Business Games A Misuse Of Pims For The Validation Of Marketing Management Simulation Games Incorporating Technology Into The 21st Century Classroom: Are We Facilitating Academic Dishonesty? Improving The Effectiveness Of Peer Evaluations The Use Of A Simulation In An Integrated Mba Curriculum Student Portfolios In Business Education Student Portfolios In Business Education At Ashland University Using SAP ERP Technology To Integrate The Undergraduate Business Curriculum Board Games And Teaching Textile Marketing And Finance Blogging: A New Threat To Student Research? The Way We Talk! Take II Strategic Management: An Evaluation Of The Use Of Three Learning Methods In Hong Kong Adoption Of Discussion-Based Teaching And Assessment In Teaching Strategic Management In Hong Kong The Tobin Q As A Company Performance Indicator Using Representative Nominal Group Technique For Course Review And An Interactive Solicitation Of Ways To Enhance Absel's Image Making Teaching Matter: The Art And Science Of Teaching Business Communication Beyond Sex, Age, And Race: Exploring The Deeper Contents Of Diversity Teaching & Learning The Facilitation Process A Brief On Debriefing: What It Is And What It Isn't Changing Perceptions Of The Importance Of Leadership: The Contribution Of Individual Spirit Harmonics In Leadership Knowledge, Skills And Sustainable Values In Learning Organizations: Some Implications From The Multicultural Virtual Classroom Challenges Of Teaching Undergraduate Organizational Behavior In A Nontraditional Time Format Interactive Online Positioning With The Web-Based Product Positioning Map Graphics Package The Longitudinal Effects Of Entrepreneurship Training On Risk Tolerance: A Look At Similarities And Differences Between Male And Female Undergraduate Students Revisiting Strategy Learning In A Total Enterprise Simulation What Are Simulations For?: Learning Objectives As A Simulation Selection Device Gaming Agency Markets Cooperate For Profits Or Compete For Market? Study Of Oligopolistic Pricing With A Business Game The Design Of A Business Simulation Using A System-Dynamics-Based Approach Modeling The Product Development Function For An Entrepreneurial Firm Simulation Performance And Forecast Accuracy? Is That All? Business Manager Identification Of Competitors In Real World And Simulation Settings Monte Carlo Simulation Analysis On The Costs Reduction Argument Of Interest Rate Swaps Ebiz Game: A Scalable Online Business Simulation Game For Entrepreneurship Training A Model For Online Education Delivery And A Look At Online Delivery Effectiveness Incorporating "Company Reputation" into Total Enterprise Simulations The Genesis And Future Of The Absel "Classicos" Initiative