Meeting someone at the bar and giving them...your email?

Internet capabilities coupled with improvements in technology is creating new communication avenues that were unfathomable just a few years ago. If someone told me when I was younger that one day I would be able to send someone a letter while sitting on a bus, I would think they were crazy. The newest and soon-to-be problematic addition to the communication world is synchronous email. By adding email features to cell phones, others will be able to reach you all the time in any location. PDAs (Personal Digital Assistant) are phones that come outfitted with the internet and an application that acts as your email mailbox. You can be sitting in the middle of the woods or on a beach and have the same capabilities as if you were sitting in front of your home computer.

Email has always been seen as a limiting factor in CMC because of its asynchronous nature. According to the Feature-based approach, deception is easier with email because it reduces non-verbal cues. The Media Richness Theory states that people choose to use email when they have a difficult task, such as lying or telling someone “bad news”. Sending email used to be a good strategy to use if talk FtF with someone is feared due to a potentially intense and immediate reaction.

Communicating over the internet has become a much richer media due to its increasing synchronicity. However, this may not always be beneficial as many problems arise when you are always available. When someone would send an email, a response would not be expected for a few days. For many, it was a less frequent task then checking physical mail (if you don’t remember, mail is delivered to your house in envelopes). After hitting the send button, who knew when it was delivered, realized, and read. Now, when someone sends an email if there isn’t a response in less than 3 hours they feel personally insulted.

Another problem with asynchronous email capabilities is its new nature of fast-paced communication. When you get an email regardless of where you are or what you are doing you must respond immediately. Interruptions through-out the day from the virtual world are creating a stressful reality. Where is the Leviathan telling society the appropriate times to answer a phone call or email? It is easy to examine Leviathans online, and even those observed in person. But wouldn’t it be a breech to privacy if people were told when and when not to use their telephones? This is going to become a big issue in society because it is the equivalent of telling people when they are allowed to speak.

Through the development of social norms relating to PDA usage, a Leviathan will develop and people will learn the respectable techniques of checking and responding to emails. People will adapt their communication skills so that they can use this technology to its greatest advantage.

Bonus Assignment - The Crystal Ball

"Technology is neither good nor bad, nor even neutral. Technology is one part of the complex of relationships that people form with each other and the world around them; it simply cannot be understood outside of that concept." Samuel Collins

I would agree with this quotation. There is no need to debate whether the internet is a good or bad force. Our generation can’t live without it. It is simply an integrated part of our daily lives and shapes our world. But how will our online interactions change, if at all? I think it’s safe to say some phenomena are permanent. Internet addiction is here to stay and will probably worsen. Studies show that between 5-10% of internet users will become addicted. With more people becoming users everyday, this means we will see more problematic internet use. Another issue I see becoming more profound is the Proteus effect. As we begin to represent ourselves more online (games, virtual classes, online work, forums, blogs) and avatars become more prevalent, it seems inevitable that these virtual versions of ourselves will influence our offline selves. In fact, as we interact more online and less in real life, I’d argue that eventually our online personalities will shape our offline personalities more than the traditional other way around.

Theories such as hyperpersonal, impression management, and media richness theory will remain the same. The aspects of the internet that make these theories true will not change. The internet has fewer cues than the real world, making it a leaner medium used for ambiguous tasks. Even if we are able to sense more cues in CMC through improved visual or audio technology, CMC will never be as rich as face to face interaction. Depending on the locus and valence of the situation, people will choose the medium that suits their needs since CMC and FTF will maintain their opposite qualities. This also means the social distance theory will last and people will continue to choose to lie online, rather than in person. As long as there are fewer cues in CMC, the hyperpersonal model will also be true. People have no choice but to overattribute what they know, use selective self-presentation, and act accordingly to behavioral confirmation. These are psychological responses that are human nature in any situation with limited cues.

I think visual anonymity will become less prevalent online as new technologies emerge. It is a lasting trend to see the people with whom you interact with online: updates pictures, camera phones, video blogs, streaming webcams, etc. Visual identity will become more important as we use the internet for more purposes, as it alleviates deception and distrust issues. This is important as the internet becomes the main venue for romance, business, social support, social networking, and other relationships. It will also lower barriers to communication and impression formation. We will sacrifice some privacy for greater security and other benefits, proving the Leviathan will live on.

I think it would be interesting to discuss how the internet is playing an increasing role in business communications. From video conferencing to virtual work spaces to instant messaging, computer mediated communication is changing the way people work by making information exchange easier and faster. It is not even necessary for us to be on-site anymore giving those who take advantage of the internet great flexibility. However, the internet is also a deterrent to workflow, causing companies to start monitoring employee usage. Also, what information there is about you online is now a factor in your job search. These would all be interesting topics to cover as all of us will need to deal with CMC in our future careers.

Another topic I think is interesting is bridging the digital divide: how technology is helping third world countries improve socio-economic conditions. As the chart below illustrates, there is a striking gap in computer/internet access across the modernized and un-modernized regions. However, government and corporate initiatives are bridging this divide, bringing our world closer and closer together. Organizations such as bridges.org are teaching people how to use the internet and maximize its potential at a grassroots level. What impacts will this have on poor nations? How will this increased access to knowledge and resources change world economics, education, communication, and politics.

South Korea is a great example of how much the internet can shape a country. 80% of households have fast internet connections (over 20mbps) and all offices and apartment buildings have fiber connections. Fast internet is increasingly easy to obtain and economical to maintain; one may wonder if the world will soon become completely broadband connected. America prides itself on often being the pack leader, but we are behind in modernizing our country’s technological infrastructure.

Lastly, I would have liked to learn about career options and research opportunities for those of us interested in social computing, information systems, etc. I’m glad to have taken this class—I feel like I understand my world a little better in terms of how social computing affects my everyday life.

Assignment 12: The Future

While accurately predicting the future is impossible, it is still possible to make decent guesses as to what tomorrow will bring to the world of Internet communication. The field is evolving astonishingly quickly; theories valid today might be obsolete tomorrow. It is thus all the more important to make predictions about the future, because unlike with some other fields, "the future" of CMC is quite literally every day.

No theory can be considered totally safe from eventual invalidation, but of all that have been discussed, the hyperpersonal model in particular seems likely to remain relevant, at least in part due to the fact that it's really more of a synergy of other theories. The phenomenon of over-attribution isn't likely to change anytime soon, barring a sudden advancement into the sorts of technologies and invasion of privacy of 1984, where absolutely everything about a person is known from the get-go. Behavior confirmation is a phenomenon that extends beyond CMC and isn't necessarily reliant on computers at all, so it too would have little cause to change.

Selective self presentation is another phenomenon that occurs both in real world and computer mediated interactions, but on computers it is even more pronounced, since it is obviously easier to hide aspects of yourself than it is in person. Even so, this component of the hyperpersonal model is less stable than the others, for the simple reason that so much information is available on the Internet that the "getting the goods" phenomenon may circumvent people's attempts to conceal certain information when they overlook the fact that it may be available elsewhere to somebody skilled at looking. This affects the developmental aspect too: accurate impressions will likely be formed more quickly thanks to this abundance of information. And of course, the reallocation of cognitive resources will change in accordance with selective self presentation; if somebody finds things out about you that you don't want him to find out, you'll have less control over where your cognitive energy is being exerted.

Caplan's model for problematic Internet use is another theory unlikely to change. With the Internet becoming more and more prevalent, it stands to reason that more and more people will be drawn into games and communities that are really best described as alternate lives, thereby abandoning their real ones - the real world problems of people that first draw them into these games probably won't change, after all- and as computer technology becomes better, these worlds will only grow more appealing and more accessible.

One thing that will change - and indeed probably already has - is the fact that no longer is it true that online getting to know a person comes before seeing a picture. Facebook and similar sites have made it so that, much as in FtF interaction, now first impressions will still be based on looks: a fine example of a phenomenon made obsolete within only the past year or so.

As for new technologies, the wave of the future lies, at least to some extent, with video games. Playing games online through X-Box Live, using the Nintendo Wii as an Internet browser - these are all things that would have been considered unthinkable twenty years ago. The Internet is entering into more and more facets of everyday life. Who can possibly claim to be able to predict just how big it will be 20 years from now?

Life Without the Internet = Life in the Stone Ages?

Just visit this site (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/top25-internet.htm) to see how the internet has changed our lives forever. From the World Wide Web to EBay to Craigslist- it has changed us all. We would probably be lost without it. Here are some stats to toast to: approximately 747 million adults logged onto the World Wide Web in January and nearly 97 billion e-mails are sent out daily; quite a lot to say the least.

Yes, the Internet has changed our lives dramatically. We all agree that life without it can be likened to life in the stone ages. Let’s take a quick look at the origins of the internet. The internet was invented in the early 70’s by the Pentagon in order to create a ‘secret’ network where information could be shared via a computer throughout the building, in privacy, from the outside world. Today, that concept has expanded, including the world in sharing information in just about every category imaginable. From trading stocks, to purchasing merchandise, to looking up health information- the internet does it all. Some internet oriented theories will always hold through time. These include:

1. Social Support: Due to social distance, anonymity, interaction management, and access, social support on the Internet is extremely common.

2. Hyperpersonal Model: Walther’s Hyperpersonal Model is made up of the over-attribution process, developmental aspect, selective self-presentation, re-allocation of cognitive resources, and behavioral confirmation. Though the degree of cues will constantly change over time, the hyperpersonal model will always be relevant.

3. Law of Attraction: Attraction is a result of shared attitudes, beliefs, and interests across different parties, and this will always remain the case.

4. Fundamental Attribution Error: Behavior is attributed to personal traits, as well as situational constraints.

There are a few theories or phenomena that will change in response to the passage of time. These include:

1. Digital Deception: With more and more cues available to the public, it will be harder to deceive on the internet.

2. Anonymity: As real-time video messaging takes a solid rooting, the theories connected to anonymity will change drastically, as anonymity will be harder to come by.

In terms of future technologies, I feel that the PDA and Blackberry sector will grow in size. Just as labtops are pretty much the norm these days, I feel that the PDA device will become the norm across all people. Also, we will see an increased reliance on video messaging. With low-cost to free phone services such as SKYPE becoming popular everyday, home landlines will become more and more obsolete.

We covered many topics in Comm245. I however would have enjoyed a greater exposure to movie and music piracy. Internet piracy constitutes obtaining movies and music before they are even released on DVD by cracking codes and ripping music. These internet pirates may feel that the “information should be free” and so ripping the music and redistributing it is permissible. Also, if we actually map internet’s fruition through time, we come to see that it has a long and twisted history. Perhaps learning of the internet’s history would have been a good way to set the stage for the semester. Discussing how the internet has changed, what people thought it would be like, and where people think it will be in the future are some ways to mull over the constant evolution of the internet.

Crystal Ball: Piracy and Memes

While we’ve covered a great deal in Comm/Info 245, I thought that there was a lot that we could have still covered. First of all, music, game, software, and movie piracy has become ubiquitous today, and it has a lot to offer as a psychological subject. While it’s common to see a community help each other, as inter-group interactions would predict, Internet pirates spend countless hours obtaining RAWs of movies, cracking the increasingly sophisticated games and software, and ripping music from CDs – and then they share it with everyone. These select knowledgeable few spend their efforts to benefit everyone (assuming said “everyone” has an internet connection), often without any sort of benefit to themselves. It may be the “information should be free” mantra that ruled the early days of the hackerdom, or it may be individuals or groups looking for fame and attention, but without a “real world” equivalent of this phenomenon, the reason for their actions may be more complex than this.

And the public reaction to the pirates’ efforts has been mostly positive (excluding the corporations that produce the goods being pirated). Many eagerly download the latest version of Windows Vista or the new releases like American Gangster, and think nothing of it despite not having paid a cent for it. It isn’t like paying for DVDs or music is a novel idea; people have been used to it for years now. Yet, it becomes very easy to justify what is essentially stealing. Downloading off the internet has made many goods into public goods. Is it simple greed and selfishness? Is it because corporations are easier to steal from, being that they are large, faceless institutions? The reaction of many companies, namely blame and punish the people, certainly doesn’t endear them to the public. It would be interesting to explore psychological aspects of internet piracy and how they have influence public consciousnesses and conscience.

Another phenomenon that I would like to see addressed is the Internet memes that get circulated so quickly. Although we briefly covered activities such as Youtubing as problematic internet use, the way that internet memes, particularly phrases and videos, influence culture is particularly fascinating. Fads are one thing, but Internet memes are on an entirely different level. I’ve once seen an entire thread where the only reply for 2 pages was “Cool story, Hansel”, a la Zoolander. Are they only a passing wave in the sea of the Interweb, or are there memes that have a more lasting effect on the thinking and actions of the users? The “shock factor” videos that have been passed around have done a remarkably thorough job about desensitizing the public. What effects might that have in the long term?

It’s been good blogging with all of you. Good luck to everyone on their finals!

Bonus Assignment 12: Final Hurrah and the Crystal Ball

The Final Hurrah

For the amusement of all I must start off this final hurrah with a musical send-off from our very own Professor Hancock!

With laughter and fondndess in our hearts let us proceed to my last blog for Psychology of Social Computing.

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The Crystal Ball

Unfortunately, I am not a gypsy fortune teller and cannot gaze into my crystal ball and reveal the future of the Internet and Psychology of Social Computing. Because of this I resorted to the predictions of an online crystal ball (http://predictions.astrology.com/cb/) and asked “What is the future of the Internet?” and the answer I received was “Think long and hard about that one.” And so I think I must.

While people’s behaviors may change and adapt for interactions more suited for CMC there are a few theories that I feel will always hold true. The first one is Goffman (1959) and Jung’s (1953) notion of “selves”. These selves include the ideal self (a self with qualities we strive to have), ought self (a self with qualities we feel we should have), actual self (the self we are now with the present qualities we express), and the true self (our inner self that has been yet fully revealed itself). I feel that this theory will not change because I believe that there are certain inherent traits that human beings have and I feel that this expression of “selves” is one of them. Everyone has a self that they present to the world, a self that no one sees, a self they thinks society wants them to be, and a self that we want to be.


Another theory that will hold true is the Self-Presentation Tactics. These tactics are the way in which people present themselves online and consist of self-descriptions, attitude expressions, nonverbal behaviors, social associations, and sets, props and lighting. These tactics are described below in an excerpt from class on September 6, 2007.

“Self-descriptions - Describing oneself in ways that convey a desired impression

Attitude expressions - Expressing attitudes that connote that one possesses certain attributes

Nonverbal behaviors - Facial expressions, gestures, body positions and movement

Social Associations - Publicly associating oneself and dissociating oneself with particular others

Sets, props, and lighting - Using aspects of the physical environment for self-presentation purposes”

Even if in the future people become more adept at online interactions I think that people will still use these self-presentation tactics to make themselves appear in a favorable light. As long as people feel the need to impress others or desire others to feel a certain way, people will resort to these tactics to help achieve their sought after goal.

The one theory that the future may bring a change to is the Social Information Processing Theory by Walther (1993).This theory states that sharing information takes longer in CMC because of the lack of cues. SIP also supports that over time the transmission of information in CMC can reach the same level of FtF. This theory has the greatest ability to change because as things become more of the norm in society then people adapt to that particular new style of living and such. Electricity was once uncommon, but as its usefulness and convience increased so did its usage. The same can be said for the internet. And it is my belief that when larger amounts of people are accustomed to CMC interactions then people will find a way for these interactions to mean or convey more. By adapting to CMC I feel that the amount of time it takes for the transmission of information in CMC to equal that of FtF would shorten dramatically and or eventually become obsolete.

A new issue with the use of technology and the internet that society has been beginning to experience are the legal issues involved with it. I do not mean issues like music piracy, but rather more similar to the articles we have shared in class where people inflict emotional abuse and such over the internet. An example of this is one we discussed in class when a mother in the same neighborhood played as a boy to spy on the daughter of another family. Said mother eventually broke off the relationship and the daughter committed suicide. The girl’s family looked for some punishment for the mother, but there were no laws that applied to this situation. I believe that these situations will only increase, not decrease, for the immediate future and I feel that these issues will have to be addressed. As these issues are dealt with I think it is something that the class should begin to cover. Other than occasional articles our class did not talk much about Internet crime and I think it might be an interesting topic to include in the class.

Well, that’s it. I had a great time in Psychology of Social Computing and hopefully will have another class just as informative and enjoyable!

Thanks for reading my last blog!

Lauren McLemore

The very last blog post!

The future of online communication is a growing phenomenon and FtF communication in certain areas, such as business deals, is becoming more obsolete. Our lives revolve around the use of the internet. Think about it, how would we communicate to friends, family and professors and do research for assignments without it? We would be lost not being able to converse online.

With this said, many of the theories we discussed in class will hold for years to come.
Using text based CMC communication, like chatting or blog writing, theories such as the Hyperpersonal model, the Goffman and Jung “multiple possible selves” idea, social support, and the idea of online community (Gemeinschaft) will still apply to such usage.

The Hyperpersonal model has five contributing factors which are the over attribution process, the developmental aspect, the selective self presentation, the re-allocation of cognitive resources, and behavioral confirmation.
· Over attribution process: people apply certain characteristics and hold certain impressions about people based on those over attributions
· Developmental aspect: as time increases, better impressions will too
· Selective self presentation: present yourself in a certain way based on what channel used
· Re-allocation of cognitive resources: people are able to focus on and analyze what the other person said and time allows them to do this
· Behavioral confirmation: behave as others see you

Goffman and Jung’s “multiple possible selves” include the ideal self, ought self, the actual self, and true self. With reduced cues available in text based mediated communication, people are able to use these self presentational tactics to portray any image of themselves that they want.
· Ideal self: qualities we strive to possess
· Actual self: qualities we express at present
· True self: inner self that has not yet been fully expressed
· Ought self: qualities we feel we should possess

Social support will be present whether in a text based or video based CMC environment. In either case, people are always looking for help or willing to give it. The advantage of social support online is that there is an exchange between strangers where no relationship is necessary to receive advice. And although people don’t know the person who they are receiving help from, they still engage in high self disclosure.

Finally, the idea of an online community will be present. Even though the internet is growing tremendously every year, and one may think that the community aspect of it will disappear. Perhaps certain aspects will but I believe a majority of the community atmosphere will still stay as it is. Sites such as advice websites and social networks like Facebook for example.

On the other note, the social presence theory will tend to not hold true for future CMC communication. I say this because as mentioned earlier by a few people, video usage will become more and more popular. With the use of webcams, the hypothesis given about the SPT won’t be accurate. Having a visual image of the other person will provide more nonverbal cues and thus impressions won’t be impoverished ones but more accurate ones.

I don’t think we could have discussed anything further in class expect maybe talking about the growth of the internet and the implications that it will have on society. I would also suggest, in agreement with a previous blog comment, that a more updated textbook should be used. This will be useful as it will be more relevant and more closely related to what we are discussing in class.

I really enjoyed this class and have learned a great deal not just about psychology of the internet, but about life as well. This wouldn’t have been possible if we didn’t have these weekly blog assignments. The internet is a crucial part of our lives and without it, we would be lost! That’s a scary thought but it’s true.