Computer-Mediated Communication

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Computer-Mediated Communication
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What is CMC?

• Broadly, Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC)
  can be defined as any form of data exchange
  across two or more networked computers.
• Narrowly, it refers to human to human
  communication via computerized technologies
  (e.g., IM, ICQ, video conference, etc.).
• It is often pitched against whats known as
  Face-to-face (FfF) communication.

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CMC vs. HCI

• In many ways, the difference between CMC and HCI
  are not fundamental differences. But they focus
  on different characteristics of new media
  technologies.
• HCI focuses on characteristics of the technology
  and individual users psychological processes.
• Interactivity
• Presence
• Cognition

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CMC vs. HCI

• CMC focuses on characteristics of the
  communicative environment and user interactions
• Anonymity (being anonymous)
• Synchronicity (real-time vs. delayed
  conversation)
• Relationship development
• Impression formation

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• The ability of engaging in anonymous
  communication is believed to be a very important
  feature of CMC.
• Different levels of anonymity
• True anonymity
• Visual anonymity
• Perceived anonymity

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• Earlier research suggest that anonymity would
  lead to impersonal (depersonalized) communication
  
• Anonymity and distance lead to a decrease in
  self-awareness
• Decrease in self-awareness lead to
  deindividualtion

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• What is self-awareness?
• at any given moment, an individuals attention
  can be directed either outward to the external
  environment toward things such as tasks, other
  people, or the social context, or directed inward
  to various aspects of the self (Duval Wicklund,
  1972).
• The different features of the self can be
  categorized into two major parts (Fenigstein,
  Scheier, Buss, 1975)
• The public self
• physical appearance, table manners, and accent.
• the private self
• personal beliefs, hidden inner feelings,
  thoughts, and memories that are covert to others
  including religious beliefs and childhood
  memories

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• Public Self-awareness
• Attention is directed towards to the public
  aspects of the self
• Public self-awareness has consistently been found
  to cause conformity towards perceived majority
  opinions (Duval Wicklund, 1972 Froming,
  Walker, Lopyan, 1982 Scheier Carver, 1980
  Wicklund Duval, 1971)
• It can be heightened by the presence of film or
  video cameras

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• Private Self-awareness
• Attention is directed towards to those private
  aspects of the self
• has been shown to cause individuals to be more
  aware of, and more responsive to, their emotions
  (Scheier, 1976 Scheier Carver, 1977), and
  engage in more self-disclosure (Joinson, 2001)..
• It can be heightened by the presence of a small
  mirror self-portrait.

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Computer-Mediated Communication

• Theoretically, Many explanations of both pro- and
  anti-social behaviors in computer-mediated
  communication (CMC) appear to hinge on changes in
  individual self-awareness.
• Empirically, very few studies directly tested the
  effect of self-awareness on common outcomes of
  CMC research.
• although self-awareness has been found to impact
  self-disclosure persuasion in CMC (Joinson,
  2001 Matheson Zanna, 1988 1989),
• Three dominant perspectives on CMC
• Deindividuation
• Social Identity Explanations of Deindividuation
  (SIDE)
• Hyperpersonal

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Deindividuation Effects in CMC

• computer-mediated communication seems to
  comprise some of the same conditions that are
  important for deindividuationanonymity, reduced
  self-regulation, and reduced self-awareness
  (Kiesler, Siegel, McGuire, 1984, p. 1126).
• the reduction of social cues in CMC can decrease
  users overall self-awareness, leading to a state
  of deindividuation, thereby fostering
  interactions that are more task-oriented,
  impersonal, and in some cases even uninhibited
  and anti-normative.

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Deindividuation Effects in CMC

• Visual anonymity allows us to communicate with
  each other without worrying about many other
  social information (social identities)
• Appearance
• Skin color
• Gender
• Age
• As a consequence, we tend to
• Communicate more honestly with less bias
• Communicate more freely with less social
  constraints
• Focus on the tasks rather than the
  socio-emotional aspects of the conversation.

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Deindividuation Effects in CMC

• Deindividuation is good for decision making and
  corporate environment
• Less influenced by power structure
• Speak more freely and thus encourages creativity
• Focusing on tasks and not bothered by social
  formality
• Deindividuation is bad for social environment
• Difficult to be personal
• Conversation may become direct and cold
  (impersonal)

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SIDE effects in CMC

• The visually anonymous environment of CMC
  heightens ones sensitivity to group and social
  identities
• You try to guess what others group identity is
  by looking for non-verbal clues
• You start to act according to your guesses
• how an individual acts in CMC depends on the
  salience of the individuals group identity and
  the norms of the group in which the individual is
  communicating

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SIDE effects in CMC

• According to this perspective, deindividuation
  may not always be impersonal.
• Just because a conversation is visually
  anonymous, it doesnt mean that we dont engage
  in self-regulation and monitoring
• What is important is which social identity is
  salient at the moment

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Hyperpersonal Communication in CMC

• visual anonymity of CMC enables users to mask
  physical or behavioral cues that are undesirable,
  and selectively self-disclose more favorable
  information.
• Thus, communication in CMC, due to anonymity,
  allow a person to strategically create an ideal
  self to present to the other person.

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Hyperpersonal Communication in CMC

• This allows communicators to carefully think
  about what to say, how to say it, and when to say
  it.
• It also allows individuals to use their
  imagination to idealize the person whom they
  are talking to.
• Thus, leading to intense social relationships
  beyond normal level (hyper-personal).

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CMC (summary)

• Compare to FtF, CMC allows communicators to be
  more strategic.
• It may lead to impersonal communication, or
  hyperpersonal communication, although this may
  seem contradicting.
• People tend to form impressions about each other
  based on group cues, and imagination.

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CMC (summary)

• However
• CMC is becoming more sophisticated
• Video
• Audio
• Profile
• Text
• Previous research seems to be a bit outdated