The InSIDE story: Social psychological processes affecting on-line groups (original) (raw)

The effects of asynchronous computer-mediated group interaction on group processes

Social science computer review, 2002

This article reports a study undertaken to investigate some of the social psychological processes underlying computer-supported group discussion in natural computer-mediated contexts. Based on the concept of deindividuation, it was hypothesized that personal identifiability and group identity would be important factors that affect the perceptions and behavior of members of computer-mediated groups. The degree of personal identifiability and the strength of group identity were manipulated across groups of geographically dispersed computer users who took part in e-mail discussions during a 2week period. The results do not support the association between deindividuation and uninhibited behavior cited in much previous research. Instead, the data provide some support for a social identity perspective of computer-mediated communication, which explains the higher levels uninhibited in identifiable computer-mediated groups. However, predictions based on social identity theory regarding group polarization and group cohesion were not supported. Possible explanations for this are discussed and further research is suggested to resolve these discrepancies.

Computer-Mediated Group Interaction Processes

2009 International Conference on Complex, Intelligent and Software Intensive Systems, 2009

The use of computer-mediated groups has become common particularly in international organizations and global companies. In light of this growing phenomenon, the traditional group interaction should be re-observed. The research questions deal with the interaction between the computer-mediated group members, trying to figure whether (and how) the media change the way people interact, in hope of improving the group interaction using group structure. Based on Bales' IPA model we present an experiment in which subjects, who were grouped, had to share information in order to complete an intellective task. The findings indicate that the positive level of the computermediated unstructured group discussions is significantly lower than the positive level of the faceto-face unstructured group discussions. The structure seem to act as a partial solution, since structured group discussions is positive than unstructured group discussions.

Mine the gap -a multi-method investigation of web-based groupware use

Mine the Gap - a multi-method investigation of web-based groupware use

Computer mediated communication in organizations today is characterized by the introduction of packaged, generic computer media based on Internet technology to support communication and collaboration. This challenges conventional views and theories on how technology is related to the context (i.e. social structures) in which it is embedded. One type of technology introduced in organizations is virtual workspaces, a specific type of web-based groupware. This thesis investigates the adoption and use of a virtual workspace technology in an organization. It studies how the technology is adopted and integrated in the organization and in specific work practices. The theory of genres of organizational communication is used as a framework for specifying the context relevant for understanding the adoption of the technology.

Changing interpersonal communication through groupware use

Interpersonal communication is the basis for almost any type of cooperation. Changing patterns of communication may have an impact on the quality of cooperative work. In this paper, we describe user experiences in a longterm groupware project. We examined communication changes, both planned and unplanned, as a result of the system introduction. We found reduced face-to-face communication, task-related and taskunrelated, as well as a changing dissemination of information. Certain losses in interpersonal communication were compensated for by user advocacy and design team-user workshops. We propose that with groupware introduction, organizations should consider support for both planned and informal means as compensation for reduced communication.

Reconciling differences between technologically and socially focused theories of group communication

2014

In today's highly mediated society it is very likely that communication technologies will be utilized for group interactions. Questions regarding how groups interact and how modalities of interaction factor into effectiveness, affinity, productivity and satisfaction abound. Scholarship in this area is broadly approached from technologically deterministic perspectives and social constructionist perspectives. The reality is that neither perspective is completely accurate and any argument that relies solely on technology or group dynamic as the determining variable will have failings. This thesis explores the middle ground, acknowledging that both communication mode and group construction are factors when assessing communication quality. In order to understand the interplay between group dynamics and mediated interaction, study participants were selected from undergraduate communication courses where group assignments are a regular part of the curriculum. The study participants were allowed to work on the assigned tasks in an unstructured setting. After completion of the tasks the students were surveyed to discover how the groups organized and interacted, with a focus on determining types of interaction, satisfaction and perceived efficiency. Participant groups chose face-to-face as their preferred form of interaction (58.33%) with email the second most frequently used (34.95%). Part of the study addresses the question of conscious selection of interaction method and the correlation with outcome satisfaction, interaction satisfaction and perceived interaction effectiveness. Groups that made active decisions on how to interact showed a significant correlation with both outcome and interaction satisfaction, while groups that interacted based simply on the preferences of the group only reported having interactive satisfaction. The results of this study lend support to both the basic tenants of media richness theory and technology deterministic theories. The primary conclusion of this thesis is that interaction based on conscious decisions by the group result in a higher level of interaction and outcome satisfaction.

Group cognition in chat: Methods of interaction/methodologies of analysis

2005

Abstract: How do groups construct their shared experience of collaborating online? While answers to many questions in human-computer interaction have been formulated largely in terms of individual psychology, questions of collaborative experience require consideration of the group as the unit of analysis. Naturally, groups include individuals as contributors and interpreters of content, but the group interactions have structures and elements of their own that call for different analytic approaches.

Breaching or Building Social Boundaries?SIDE-Effects of Computer-Mediated Communication

Communication Research, 1998

influence, group pressure, and status and power differentials that characterize much face-to-face interaction. We review research conducted within the framework of the social identity model of deindividuation effects (SIDE) demonstrating that this is not always the case. When communicators share a common social identity, they appear to be more susceptible to group influence, social attraction, stereotyping, gender typing, and discrimination in anonymous CMC. Although CMC gives us the opportunity to traverse social boundaries, paradoxically, it can also afford these boundaries greater power, especially when they define self-and group identity.