遠距學習對成人教育是有正面效用的，臺灣教育機構及學校推行遠距教學已有多年，但過去國內也有部份研究指出，遠距學習仍有它的缺點。此現象引發本研究由另一角度思考，因為之前大部份研究多認為電腦操作能力、學習設備、與學習環境的缺乏為其影響因素。但由於電腦科技日新月異，這些應已非最重要因素，而是與學生本身的學習態度有關。遠距學習強調學習者的學習態度，學習者必需扮演主動的角色，而良好的學習態度又必須依賴其正面的人格特質、與自我導向學習來提升。本研究即應用此概念來檢驗這三個構面，採取問卷調查方式，並利用結構方程式(SEM)同時處理各構面之關係，藉以釐清其中的直接與間接路徑的分解效果。結果發現，對遠距學習者的學習態度之研究，重點應放在自我導向學習，而不是只針對人格特質或人口統計變項去尋找原因。若能繞個方向經由自我導向學習的中介變數著手，才能真正克服遠距學習缺點的問題，此結果正好能點出以前研究者所忽略的方向。

Many projects and researches on distance learning have been carried out successfully because of positive effects on adult learning. Unfortunately, distance learning contain some vogue reasons that represent a failure outcome in Taiwan, most of schools emphasized on the computer operative ability, learning environment, but did not pay much attention on learning attitude, which are important for successful learning. And many research still lack adequate factors, such as personal trait, self-directed, or other else that allow scholars to explain the relationship with learning attitude, This research, thus, uses a survey to investigate the three factors as above, SEM (structural equation modeling) was conducts to test the direct and indirect effects by personal trait as well, the result found that the most critical factor is self-directed which may offered a explainable reason on successful distance learning. The finding offers a new realm to achieve successful distance learning which ignored by previous study.