Contexts of Computer-Mediated Communication

In 1992, just after commercial restrictions were lifted on what then became the Internet, and at the dawn of the World Wide Web, I published the book Contexts of Computer-Mediated Communication, which brought together the writings of some of the key researchers in the new field of computer-mediated communication. The book combines theoretical analyses of … Read more

The In-SIDE story: Social psychological processes affecting on-line groups

CMC provides a new paradigm for research into general deindividuation phenomena that can usefully clarify some of the complexities in earlier deindividuation research as well as test the intervening processes that deindividuating contexts supposedly activate. For example, it enables one to manipulate anonymity and identifiability independently from physical isolation and co-presence. Conceptual distinctions between different … Read more

Engaging in email discussion: conversational context and social identity

1. Email, Separation and Sociability Indonesia is a vast archipelago. Many of its islands are difficult to reach and suffer from poor infrastructure. For many Indonesians, email has been something of a revelation in terms of connection to the outside world and communicating within Indonesia. In recent years, email has received scant attention in HCI … Read more