Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of peripheral services offered by distance education (DE) institutes on student involvement in DE and, examine whether this impact is mediated by student experience quality. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative research approach based on cross-sectional survey design was used where data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Sample consisted of 400 undergraduates of the Open University of Sri Lanka, drawn using simple random sampling technique. Collected data were analyzed using the structural equation model. Findings Data analysis revealed that there is a significant direct impact of peripheral services offered by DE institutes on student involvement in the Sri Lankan context. Furthermore, it is validated that this impact is mediated by student experience quality. Research limitations/implications Focus of the study is only on the impact of contextual elements rather than personal or demographic factors of students which can have an important impact on their experience quality as well as involvement. Practical implications Findings are useful in designing and redesigning service offering and policy development by DE institutes to make their services more appealing. Originality/value Even though previous studies have identified student dropout and lower academic excellence as issues in DE, how service offering can be used to overcome them via student involvement has not received considerable attention. Hence, the tested conceptual model developed on multiple theories is a novel contribution to the existing knowledge base.

Information communication technology (ICT), considered as one of the major impacts of organizational performance and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), plays a significant role in the Sri Lankan economy as a strategic partner. Thus, the article examines current levels of ICT usage and perceived barriers to ICT adoption in SMEs in Sri Lanka. The findings revealed that despite the majority of respondents using IT for essential functions, they lacked proper internal IT infrastructures, personal motivation, had internet connection issues, trust issues, and lack of knowledge. These factors were identified as the perceived barriers to ICT adoption in SMEs in Sri Lanka. Data was collected from 67 SME owners from Sri Lanka, except the North province, in November 2016. The findings offer valuable insights to policy makers in general and to the SME owners. The methodology, implications, and suggestions are also discussed.

Despite its effectiveness, a higher student drop-out rate and lower student academic excellence are perceived as critical issues in the Distance Education (DE) system. Previous studies have emphasised on diverting attention towards core and peripheral services offered by DE institutes as a contextual solution. However, overcoming these issues only via the services offered is questionable as Students Involvement (SI) has been identified as a success factor in DE. Therefore, this paper investigates the impact core and peripheral services offered by DE institutes have on SI. Two hypotheses were developed through a literature review and tested using a sample of 356 undergraduates of a DE institute, drawn using simple random technique. Data analysis supported the significant positive impact of peripheral services on SI yet, rejected that of core services. These findings are imperative in designing services offered by DE institutes and, thereby addressing the prevailing issues that hinder the system's effectiveness.

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