As online class offerings continue to proliferate and more students take at least one online class in college, more research is needed to explore factors that impact students’ perceptions of their online classes. Past research has found a positive relationship between students’ computer self-efficacy and their satisfaction with online learning, but little research has explored how learning management system and online learning self-efficacy relate to perceptions of satisfaction and perceived usefulness of online classes. In addition to confidence, students must also implement and apply their learning skills in an online environment; thus self-regulation and time management as well as past online learning experience are additional factors that have been shown to be related to satisfaction with and usefulness of online learning. This study explores how students’ confidence regarding their ability to use online learning platforms, utilize self-regulation strategies, and their confidence in their ability to learn in online classes predict both their satisfaction with and perceived usefulness of online classes. Multiple regression analyses revealed that students’ confidence to learn online was the strongest positive predictor of satisfaction and usefulness of online classes. The results indicate that exploring students’ purpose and reasons for taking online classes, beyond a students’ skill set and learning strategies, are fruitful directions to pursue when assessing evaluations of online classes.

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This paper explores the impact of organizational attributes on client engagement within substance abuse treatment. Previous research has identified organizational features, including small size, accreditation, and workplace practices that impact client engagement (Broome, Flynn, Knight, & Simpson, 2007). The current study sought to explore how aspects of the work environment impact client engagement. The sample included 89 programs located in 9 states across the U.S. Work environment measures included counselor perceptions of stress, burnout, and work satisfaction at each program, while engagement measures included client ratings of participation, counseling rapport, and treatment satisfaction. Using multiple regression, tests of moderation and mediation revealed that staff stress negatively predicted client participation in treatment. Burnout was related to stress, but was not related to participation. Two additional organizational measures – workload and influence – moderated the positive relationship between staff stress and burnout. Implications for drug treatment programs are discussed.

In view of the increasing ubiquity of qualitative research, particularly mixed method designs, it is important to examine whether qualitative and quantitative models of research can be integrated and how this integration should take place. The recent adoption of best practices for mixed methods research by the NIH seems an opportune starting point for discussion of these questions. This article explores the notion that qualitative and quantitative research, while stemming from fundamentally different "approaches," might yet find an appropriate complementary relationship. We argue, however, that such a complementary relationship depends on an understanding of the notion of approach and an insight into the fundamentally different guiding questions and domains of these 2 research models. Holding that "good fences make good neighbors," this article explores the frontier between quantitative and qualitative research and the challenges attendant to designing and conducting mixed methods research.

The purpose of this study is to establish the psychometric properties of a non-commercial, publicly available, modular screening and assessment system for adolescents in substance abuse treatment. Data were collected in 2011-2012 from 1189 adolescents admitted to 8 residential treatment programs in urban and rural locations in the United States. Results from 3 sets of analyses documented the instruments to be reliable. Females reported more problems than males, and younger adolescents reported more problems than older youth. Implications and limitations are discussed, and suggestions for future research are provided.