Chapter 3 - Computer Mediated Communication and Online Media

Chapter Summary

Communication tools online

  • The variety of online communication tools has increased substantially in recent years.
  • Different types of communication tools may be used for different purposes, or to communicate with different people.
  • Online communication can be synchronous or asynchronous.
  • Synchronous communication involves simultaneously exchanging messages.
  • Asynchronous communication occurs where users may not be simultaneously communicating.
  • Online communication tools often have fluidity – they can be easily updated.
  • Online communication language tends to have similarities to spoken language, although it is almost always written.
  • The change in our use of communication tools may have impacts on society, such as affecting our interpersonal relationships and literacy.

A very short history of Computer Mediated Communication

  • Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) has been around for a relatively short period of time.
  • Early CMC users noted how non-verbal cues were often lost through this medium.
  • This led to the determination of CMC as a lean medium (also known as cues filtered out).
  • However, socioemotional content was sometimes included, and more recently it has been noted that online and offline communication have similar levels of emotional content.
  • The early World Wide Web was relatively static with little interaction.
  • Web 2.0 is a term given to describe the increased interactivity of more modern Web applications.
  • While the majority of CMC is still text-based, there is also an increase in multimodality, with some social media platforms being created specifically for the sharing of such content.

Language and online communication

  • Communication is not limited to verbal language.
  • Various mechanisms are used online to reduce the lean medium effect.
  • These include abbreviations, acronyms, emoticons and paralanguage.

Paralanguage

  • Paralanguage refers to non-verbal communications such as sounds of hesitancy, uncertainty, surprise and other emotions.
  • In written CMC, various methods have been adopted to illustrate such communications.
  • These include grammatical techniques and written approximations of sounds.

Acronyms and abbreviations

  • Acronyms and abbreviations can speed up response times and use fewer characters.
  • Their usefulness is dependent on the familiarity of the receiving communicator with the abbreviation or acronym involved.
  • There can be cultural differences in the use of such techniques.
  • Also, group discussions relating to specific topics can develop their own abbreviations and acronyms.
  • There are specific typologies and taxonomies of such abbreviations, acronyms, and other ‘textisms’.

Emoticons/graphic accents/smileys/emojis

  • Emoticons were developed in the relatively early days of online communication to demonstrate facial emotions.
  • This added socioemotional content to messages that could otherwise be misinterpreted.
  • An emoticon can change the meaning of a message.
  • Socioemotional discussions evoke more use of emoticons than task-oriented discussions.
  • Females have been found to send more emoticons than males.

Communication theories

  • There are many types of communication theory.
  • Some have been specifically developed for online communication.

Hyperpersonal communication

  • Walther proposed the hyperpersonal model of online communication.
  • He suggested that four elements of CMC can result in heightened levels of affection when compared to face-to-face communication.
  • These are the sender, receiver, feedback and the asynchronous channel of communication.
  • Researchers have noted that online communication can lead to intensified disclosures and perceived intimacy.

The Shannon–Weaver mathematical model

  • The Shannon–Weaver model focuses on the mechanical exchange of information.
  • It considers factors such as noise, entropy, redundancy and channel capacity.
  • However, it does not consider many interpersonal aspects of communication.

Rules theory/co-ordinated management of meaning (CMM)

  • Pearce and Cronen (1980) suggested rules theory and the co-ordinated management of meaning.
  • Their theory suggests that human communication is guided by rules and social patterns.
  • Their ‘hierarchy of meanings’ considers how a communication may have different meanings, depending on factors such as culture and relationships.
  • Communication is also co-ordinated by rules, both constitutive and regulative.

Herb Clark’s grounding theory

  • Clark’s grounding theory describes how conversation is collaborative.
  • Communication partners need to build shared understanding through common ground.
  • This theory has particular application in terms of mutual understanding of the meanings of abbreviations, acronyms, emoticons and paralanguage.

Flow Theory

  • Flow Theory (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) is a positive psychology concept rather than a communication theory.
  • However, it can help to explain why users of CMC gain so much enjoyment from the experience.
  • Its applications to online behaviour have been examined by many researchers.

Other theories of communication

  • Many other researchers and theorists have proposed theories of communication.
  • While these were often developed with offline communication in mind, they can frequently be applied to CMC.
  • Some important theories include those developed by Watzlawick, Berger, Altman and Taylor, Baxter and Montgomery, and Giles.

Related concepts

  • Online communication is complex – we need to consider other factors such as the topic of conversation when researching it.
  • We also need to consider factors such as impression management, privacy, anonymity, interpersonal attraction and online aggression.
  • These topics are considered in other chapters of the book.

Further Reading

Joseph Walther, whose theory on hyperpersonal communication is discussed in this chapter, has written a chapter for the SAGE Handbook of Interpersonal Communication on theories of CMC and interpersonal relations.

In this article, Karakayali and Kilic (2013) examine how users manage the challenges of social networking sites with regard to their social connections.

  • Karakayali, N. & Kilic, A. (2013). More network conscious than ever? Challenges, strategies and analytic labor of users in the Facebook environment. Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, 18(2), 61–79.

Lee, Noh and Koo identify how social networking sites can have a positive effect on the well-being of people experiencing loneliness.

As noted in the chapter, research on Computer Mediated Communication must also consider the content and applications of the communication. Sillence (2013) examines how online groups are used for the transfer of peer advice for breast cancer.

Audio and Video links

Audio

Dr Aleks Krotoski presents a weekly podcast on BBC Radio 4 entitled ‘The Digital Human’, which examines digital culture and modern society. The historical episodes remain available. She has considered topics such as altruism, value, adaptation, ethics, misinformation and risk. The podcasts are available from:

Video

Psychologist Sherry Turkle discusses how the use of Computer Mediated Communication affects our relationships and conversational abilities in this TED Talk from 2012.

Useful website

The Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (Wiley) is an interdisciplinary peer-reviewed journal with a focus on social science and CMC.
It is published approximately four times per year.

Multiple Choice Questions

Essay Questions

  1. Evaluate how well theories of communication developed with offline communication in mind can help to explain Computer Mediated Communication.
  2. The ‘lean medium’ of online communication and Walther’s hyperpersonal model would appear on the surface to be contradictory. How can such contradiction be understood in the light of theory and research in Computer Mediated Communication?
  3. Online communication provides excellent connectivity for business and educational reasons. However, it can never fully replace face-to-face meetings and teaching. Discuss.
  4. Have abbreviations and acronyms irrevocably altered language? Is this a positive or negative development? Why?