Individual differences of students studying in distance (a foreign literature review)

Distance higher education has been growing rapidly all over the world and the importance of understanding psycho-pedagogical issues of learners studying in distance education has been growing too. In this article an attempt has been made to investigate the current researches on components of individual differences like self-actualization, self-regulation, locus of control, and motivation and their influence in distance education setting. Current review of the literature indicates that physical and psychological separation of learners and teachers initiate various psycho-pedagogical issues and special attention must be given to accommodate this in content developments, pedagogical and instructional design of distance education. Moreover, distance education enhances self-regulation skills, accommodates different cognitive/learning styles, increases self-efficacy and develops internality (internal locus of control), raises intrinsic motivation, promotes learner autonomy, supports personality development, and helps to realize one’s potential and become more self-actualized person.