Communication: Trends in Devices and Methods

1. For optimal results, please download the presentation rather than viewing from within Google Docs. Gretchen Kriesen | IDT 507 Communication: Trends in Devices and Methods

2. Overview My communication, both created and consumed, shifts from active (created) to passive (consumed) throughout the day. On a working day, I spend most of the day sitting in front of my laptop and engage in a great deal of active communication. On a non-working day, I spend much less time on my laptop, which consequently increases my passive communication, consumed on various devices. After analyzing the data, two communication preferences emerged: • I prefer to communicate via text, specifically email. • I prefer to carry out that communication with my laptop vs. any other device. These trends, and theories to explain the findings, are fleshed out on the following slides.

3. Theoretical Foundations: Affordance “’Affordance’ refers to the perceived and actual properties of a thing, primarily those functional properties that determine just how the thing could possibly be used” (Salomon, 1993, p. 51 as quoted in Conole & Dyke, 2003). According to Soegaard, the differences between actual and perceived lie in the concrete, factual qualities of a thing (actual) and how a user perceives those qualities to be of use. The perceived qualities may different from user to user based on experience, skills, knowledge, etc. For example, a mug has the affordance of containing. Depending on your experience, the mug might have the perceived affordance of holding coffee. However, consider a child who has no experience with coffee and associates mugs with containers for his crayons. For that child, the mug has the actual affordance of containing and the perceived affordance of being a crayon container.

4. Theoretical Foundations: U & G “Uses and gratifications approach emphasizes motives and the self-perceived needs of audience members” (Wikibooks, 2012, para. 15). Users make selections based on their needs and an assessment of how well certain items will meet those needs. In terms of media use, with which we are concerned here, McQuail categorizes needs thusly: informational, personal identity, integration and social interaction, and entertainment (Wikibooks, 2012). By applying the U&G theory to selections, one can understand what motivations are driving an individual’s decisions and preferences for one option versus another.

5. My communication activities for an average work day and an average non-work day The Data

6. Communication Devices and Types • I broke communication into two major types: • Active: communication that is generated or interacted with (includes participation as in a conversation or response to an email) • Talking • Writing • Passive: communication that is consumed only (i.e., no participation) • Reading • Watching • Listening

7. Communication Devices and Types The following slides show a timeline of the devices I use to communicate and how my communication types change throughout the day. • The devices I use to communicate include: • Laptop • iPad • iPhone • iPod • TV • Printed materials

8. Work Day: Devices and Communication Timeline My communication is the most active when I am working. I use my laptop for almost all communication, save for phone calls which occur about once a day. The dotted line shows that the phone is available, but not in use for the whole of this time. Active 8:30 9:30 10:30 11:30 12:30 1:30 2:30 3:30 4:30 5:30 6:30 7:30 8:30 9:30 10:30 11:30 12:30 Passive As the day goes on, my communication becomes more passive; I consume information via iPod, print, TV, and my iPad(sometimes using more than one device at the same time. Laptop iPhone iPod Print TV iPad

9. Non-Work Day: Devices and Communication Timeline Active 8:30 9:30 10:30 11:30 12:30 1:30 2:30 3:30 4:30 5:30 6:30 7:30 8:30 9:30 10:30 11:30 12:30 Passive On a non-work day, time working at my desk working is greatly diminished; leisure activities increase as does the use of the associated devices. However, the same patterns and progression exist as on a work day. Laptop iPhone iPod Print TV iPad

10. Device Preferences Figure 1 (right) shows how the devices I use to communicate compare to each other on a work day vs. a non-work day. It is clear that my preferred device for communicating is my laptop (average of 6 hours/day). Figures 2a and 2b on the following slide break down the communication activities performed on my laptop.

11. Device Preference: Laptop Activity

12. Affordances of the Laptop Working on my laptop is my preferred method of communicating, responsible for most of my active/authored communication (80% on average) which is written. What affordances are motivating this choice? Full keyboard for typing (actual affordance)Ease of typing (perceived affordance) Large screen with high resolution (actual)Will make reading and viewing easier (perceived) Large capacity for multiple programs and files (actual)Flexibility to customize configuration to meet my unique needs and save all of my created content (perceived affordance) Internet access capability (actual)Real-time text-based conversations (perceived)

13. Uses and Gratifications of the Laptop • Information • Using the large screen (easier reading) and the internet connection, the laptop becomes a preferred tool to access information, read digital files, and engage in coursework. • Personal identity • I enjoy writing and the affordance of a full keyboard makes writing – part of my identity – easy. • Integration and social interaction • The full keyboard and availability of the internet mean it’s easy for me to communicate with friends and family (email, social media, etc.) • Entertainment • I enjoy playing a few games on my laptop which can help me relax, take my mind off of problems, and/or fill time while waiting for a file to arrive.

14. Active Communication Preferences • Figures 3a and 3b on the following slide break down my daily, active communication based on instances of each type (e.g., number of emails generated, IM exchanges participated in, voicemails left). • Regardless of whether it is a work day or a non-work day, most of my communication is: • Text-based (an average of 82%) • Via email (an average of 51%)

15. Active Communication Preferences Figure 3a. Communication GeneratedWORK DAY Figure 3b. Communication GeneratedNON-WORK DAY % Text-based: 87% % Text-based: 76%

16. Affordances of Email • Fast delivery of messages (actual) • More real-time communication/instant replies (perceived) • Decreased need for phone conversations (perceived) • Text-based rather than verbal communication (actual) • More effective communication (perceived if you communicate better in writing) • More efficient communication (perceived if you type quickly and don’t waste time with pleasantries) • Documentation of communication (actual) • Increased productivity; conversations don’t have to be subsequently documented for future reference (perceived) • Asynchronous communication (actual) • Increased productivity; one can get a message off of her plate when it’s convenient without having to wait for the other person to have time to communicate which can result in unnecessary delays or interruptions (perceived)

17. Uses and Gratifications: Email • Information • Email offers me ways to gather information not only on a personal level but on a professional one as well; I use email to land jobs, gather instructions to complete a job, give and receive feedback and relevant files, etc. • I also receive several newsletters via email which contribute to my education about personal and professional interests • Personal identity • Discussing issues with friends via email helps me better understand myself • Integration and social interaction • I tend to email with my friends far more than I see them, to email allows me to cultivate those friendships in the absence of face-to-face or other live communication • Entertainment • Exchanges with friends can make me laugh (both through personal stories shared as well as links to items on the internet), help me work out or take my mind off of issues, and help with relaxation

18. Works Cited Conole, G. & Dyke, M. (2004) . What are the affordances of information and communication technologies? Association for Learning Technology Journal, 12 (2). pp. 113-124. Soegaard, M. (2010). Affordances. Retrieved from http://www.interaction-design.org/how_to_cite.html?id=12366&objectType=html_pages&referer=http://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/affordances.html Wikibooks. (2012). Communication theory/Uses and gratifications. Retrieved from http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Communication_Theory/Uses_and_Gratifications

19. Other Links To source spreadsheet:https://docs.google.com/a/sunyit.edu/open?id=0B-M0EsGsFGVDdWNtQ3ZqUWJWYXc To memo:https://docs.google.com/a/sunyit.edu/document/d/1uCsb6g9x0kOR95PKl-xnLXWCKmZRgjWzbNG0SNJO1dY/edit