The landscape of instructional communication research is ever changing, as the media through which classes are taught constantly evolves. A plethora of research currently exists on the implications of online courses at community colleges. Likewise there is an abundance of quantitative research focusing on community college instructors and web-based courses. Using diffusion of innovation as the theoretical framework, this qualitative study sought to further understand the barriers and challenges that discourage journalism and communication instructors at community colleges from teaching online courses. The study provided a rich insight into the present attitudes towards online instruction. Results identified several core barriers underlying faculty resistance toward online instruction. There were differences in responses related to gender, age, self-efficacy, and prior online teaching experience. The results of this study suggest that resistance toward online instruction at community colleges exists among this group of communication and journalism instructors.
