Ghosts in the Machine:

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Ghosts in the Machine
An Exploratory Study of Senior Pastors
Technology Use in Atlanta-Area Churches
Susan Wyche Gillian R. Hayes Lonnie D.
Harvel Advisor Dr. Rebecca E. Grinter
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Motivation

• 64 of the nations 120 million Internet users
  have done things online that relate to religions
  or spiritual matter 1.
• Technology increasingly used in religious
  services (i.e. simulcast sermons, podcasting
  sermons, hymns projected on video screens)
• Over 75 of megachurch congregations are located
  in Sunbelt states, with nearly half of them in
  the southeast region. Georgia has one of the
  highest concentrations of mega churches 2.

Method

• 19 interviews with senior pastors at mainstream,
  Protestant, area churches. Predominately Baptist
  and Methodist.
• Sunday visits to areas largest churches
• Expert interviews with theologians (Candler
  School of Theology, Emory University)

1 Hoover, S.M., Schofield, L., and Rainie.
(2004) Faith Online. Pew Internet American Life
Project. 2 Thumma, S. (1996) The Kingdom, the
Power and the Glory The Megachurch in American
Society. (PhD Dissertation). Emory University.
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Initial findings/ Relevance to CHI community
I need to look at peoples faces, so much of
what is said, is not whats said
There are issues of propriety people need safe
places where they can speak and know their words
are not going anywhere.
With e-mail you cant get that voice inflection
and things can be taken out of context really
easily
Can we design interfaces that afford spiritually
connectedness while preserving the communicative
convenience that web technologies offer
congregations?
Thank you to Genevieve Bell for her thoughtful
guidance and to all of the pastors at area
churches for their time and interest. Question?
Comments? Please e-mail spwyche_at_cc.gatech.edu