Peeping in the minds of MOOCs instructors: using fuzzy approach to understand the motivational factors

Purpose Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are among the most recent e-learning initiatives to gain widespread acceptance among universities. However, despite MOOCs' “much-documented” benefits, many questions are being raised late regarding the long-term sustainability of the open online teaching e-learning model. With high dropout rates in MOOCs courses, recent research has focused on the challenges limiting MOOCs’ growth. But most of the research is directed toward students’ perspectives, leaving the instructors’ perspective. One of the most important aspects of instructors’ perspective is the motivation for MOOCs' development and delivery. Design/methodology/approach The present study collected the data from 25 MOOC developers of Indian origin. To prioritize or rank the motivational factor behind developing a MOOC, a fuzzy-analytical hierarchical process (F-AHP) technique was applied to the data set. The primary motivational factors considered for the study were professional development, altruism, personal development, institutional development, intrigue, monetary benefits and peer influence. Findings The results showed that professional development and personal development are two prime motives that drive MOOCs development. Monetary benefits and peer influence were the least important factors among all the factors considered for the study. Originality/value Previous studies have identified and modeled the motivational factors that contribute toward developing MOOCs. However, there was little knowledge about the hierarchy among the motivating factors. The present study fills this gap by establishing the ranking of motivational factors responsible for MOOCs development. Peer review The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-04-2021-0205 .