Computer Mediated Communication - What does it mean to you?

The fact you are reading this says something about you and about our culture. Today we form relationships, communicate with friends and family, collaborate with co-workers, even seek romantic relationships online. The researchers call this "Computer-Mediated Communication" or CMC for short.

We are learning a lot about who communicates online, how we do it, what works, what doesn't work, and where we might go from here.

Online communication is fascinating in many ways. First, it is global in nature. In the past, only HAM radio operators, who formed a very small portion of the population, formed such long distance relationships. In addition to being global, it is also unique in that relationships are often formed with people one will never see in the flesh. Again, except for HAM's and those with pen pals, few people in the past formed any significant relationships without a face-to-face component. In fact, the process tends to be turned around. In traditional relationship building, you begin with a face-to-face relationship and then move on to a mediated (telephone, letter) relationship. However, an increasing number of relationships begin online and migrate to face-to-face, as in the case of "online dating."

Online communication also presents the challenge of being primarily text-based communication. This changes the process in several ways. First, it tends to be less spontaneous. The act of typing produces a deliberate editing of one's thoughts. That last sentence, for instance, went through four different variations in the process of writing it. However, being text-based also encourages an increased depth of communication. I wrote an email to a discussion group once called "An Expectation of Intimacy among Strangers." The point I made is that we often move very rapidly from first meeting to significant self-disclosure. Close knit online communities begin to expect such candor from their group members. Being text based, though, removes the typical nonverbal cues we depend on especially to determine emotional content of communication. This can lead to messages being misunderstood because someone doesn't see the playful smile or hear the ironic tone in one's voice. However, it can also be a plus. Frequently, we make snap judgments of people based on physical appearance, race, gender, hairstyle or clothing. Removal of those cues forces us to judge a person on the content of one's message rather than the cut of one's hair.

In this blog we will review some of this research and discuss the implications of that research in our online communication. After all, it's no longer a question of whether you will communicate online or not. It's just a matter of when, and how well.