Prolegomenon to the Impact of Epistemic Beliefs on Online Pedagogical Affinity: A Comparative Study of STEM and Non-STEM Faculty

This study explores relationships between epistemic beliefs, pedagogical affinity, and objectivist/positivist views in higher education faculty. Anchored in STEM and non-STEM disciplines, it investigates how beliefs about the nature of knowledge shape instructional orientations—particularly the tension between positivist and constructivist approaches. Using a cross-sectional, quantitative design, 241 faculty were surveyed, measuring five dimensions of epistemic beliefs, objectivist/positivist views, and indicators of pedagogical affinity. Triangulation of Likert-scale measures and vignette-based indicators provided multidimensional perspectives on epistemic and pedagogical patterns. Correlation analyses revealed strong-moderate relationships, showing that faculty who believe in expert and certain knowledge are more likely to favor objectivist, instructor-centered approaches. ANOVA results highlighted disciplinary differences: STEM faculty reported stronger beliefs in the certainty of knowledge, greater trust in expert knowledge, and higher affinity for positivist pedagogy than their counterparts in the Humanities and Social Sciences. Further analysis of disciplinary subgroups revealed that faculty in the Natural and Formal Sciences showed the strongest objectivist views, while those in the Natural and Applied Sciences exhibited the highest positivist pedagogical affinity. Building on these findings, the study critiques current epistemic belief frameworks and proposes a Constructionist Epistemic Beliefs Model—reframing epistemic beliefs as Dialogic Knowledge, Situated Knowledge, Knowledge Construction, Learning Potential, and Critical Pluralism. This reconceptualization advances the field by challenging embedded objectivist hierarchies evident in epistemic beliefs research and reframing them as constructionist constructs. This study affirms that epistemic beliefs influence openness to constructivist pedagogy and lays the conceptual and theoretical groundwork for future research and learner-centered online STEM environments.