Search results for "mediated communication"

From technology engineering to social engineering

2007

Virtual worlds have a long history, and it also includes various technologies. Yet research interest towards them has diverged over the years. It seems that nowadays they are on focus again with the evolution of socially oriented and community-supporting virtual worlds. Instead of technical factors, human factors and the motivation behind the use are highlighted. In this paper, we will briefly review the research efforts made in the 90's, and derive a set of themes that were of interest back then. Next, we will expand the set by arguing for newer themes, identified in the latest information systems literature. These two sets of themes form a basis of a research agenda for studying virtual w…

Use and acceptance of new technology by older people. Findings of the international MOBILATE survey: ‘Enhancing mobility in later life’

2005

Technology has become part of today’s life. It constitutes a fundamental aspect of the environment also for older people who are not familiar with most of the new technologies. Is their use of technology based on certain abilities and is this related with such factors as income, lack of alternatives, past performance, or availability of equipment? Methods The MOBILATE 2000 database of a survey conducted in 5 European countries was aimed at the enhancement of out-of-home mobility of older people. The project offers data describing the use and acceptance of new technologies. Insight can be gained into the characteristics of users and non-users of more or less common technologies like ATM, tic…

CMC features in lingua franca e-mail messages

2007

"We fangirls need our fanservice" : a study on the topics of discussion in a predominantly female online football community

2013

Tämä tutkielma tarkastelee pääosin naisten muodostamaa Livejournal-yhteisöä, jonka kieli on englanti ja keskustelun aihe jalkapallo. Pyrin selvittämään, miten yhteisön jäsenet käsittelevät perinteisesti miehiseksi miellettyä diskurssia. Tämä selviää tutkimalla yhteisön puheenaiheiden eli topiikkien sisältöä vuonna 2010. Topiikkeja ja yhteisön käyttäjäprofiilia tutkimalla pyrin myös selvittämään, voiko yhteisön puheenaiheita tai itse yhteisöä kuvailla sukupuolittuneiksi. Urheilun on laajalti osoitettu olevan epätasa-arvoisia valtakonstruktioita ylläpitävä voima. Lisätutkimukselle on siis selkeää tarvetta. Omani kaltaisia tutkimuksia ei myöskään ole aikaisemmin tehty. Tämän poikkitieteellisen…

A Linguistic Analysis of the Online Debate on Vaccines and Use of Fora as Information Stations and Confirmation Niche

2017

This study looks at the communication between users concerning health risks, with the aim of exploring their use of fora and assessing whether participants establish a niche with like-minded users during these exchanges. By integrating a corpus linguistic approach with content analysis and multiple studies on computer mediated health discourse, this study analyses the intense attention paid to the correlation between the Measles Mumps Rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism, as an example of elaboration of the message and risk of emotive amplification, with fora working as echo chambers. Results include: a) a qualitative analysis of the content of posts and their qualification, b) a focus on the t…

Argumentation in Secondary School Students' Structured and Unstructured Chat Discussions

2012

Joint construction of new knowledge demands that persons can express their statements in a convincing way and explore other people's arguments constructively. For this reason, more knowledge on different means to support collaborative argumentation is needed. This study clarifies whether structured interaction supports students' critical and elaborative argumentation. The study compares the quality of secondary school students' argumentation during structured and unstructured chat interaction. The data consist of 16 dyadic chat discussions: 8 discussions concerned vivisection and 8 gender equality. Half of the discussions were carried out through structured chat, and the other half through…

Using Slack for computer-mediated communication to support higher education students’ peer interactions during Master’s thesis seminar

2018

Our study contributes to the research on computer-mediated communication in higher education by experimenting a modern communication tool called Slack. In particular, we consider using Slack to support students’ peer interactions during Master’s thesis work. For this purpose, we designed a case study that was executed in a Master’s thesis seminar course. During the course, all out-of-class communication was carried out by using Slack, instead of e-mails or learning management systems. After the course, we used a questionnaire to investigate how the students perceived Slack for asking for assistance, their intention to use Slack, and Slack’s ease of use. Furthermore, the questionnaire asked …

From Multiple Perspectives to Shared Understanding: A small group in an online learning environment

2008

The aim of this study was to explore how learners operating in a small group reach shared understanding as they work out joint research questions and build a theoretical framework and to identify the resources and tools they used in the process. The learners' own interpretations of their group activities and learning were also taken into account. The data, consisting of group discussions and the documents produced by the group, were subjected to a qualitative content analysis. The group members employed a variety of resources and tools to exchange their individual perspectives and achieve shared understanding. Summaries of relevant literature laid a foundation for the group's theoretical di…

Loafing in the digital age: The role of computer mediated communication in the relation between perceived loafing and group affective outcomes

2014

Virtual work has become an increasingly central practice for the organization of the 21st century. While effective virtual workgroups can create synergies that boost innovation and performance, ineffective workgroups become a great burden for organizations. Empirical research has shown that some negative behaviors, such as social loafing, negatively influence a group's affective outcomes, in both collocated (face-to-face) and virtual workgroups. In this study, we explore if working through low fidelity computer mediated communication (CMC) increases the negative impact of perceived loafing over cohesion and work satisfaction. On this rationale, we conducted a laboratory study with 44 groups…

Computer Mediated Communication and Collaboration in a Virtual Learning Environment Based on a Multi-agent System with Wasp-Like Behavior

2008

In this paper is presented a model for an adaptive multi-agent system for dynamic routing of the grants' activities from a learning environment, based on the adaptive wasp colonies behavior. The agents use wasp task allocation behavior, combined with a model of wasp dominance hierarchy formation. The model we introduced allows the assignment of activities in a grant, taking into account the specialization of students, their experience and the complexity of activities already taken. An adaptive method allows students to enter in the Grant system for the first time. The system is changing dynamic, because both the type of activities and the students involved in the system change. Our approach…