Martin Tanis

Communication and commitment in organizations: A social identity approach.

Results of two studies show that horizontal communications (informal, with proximate colleagues, of socio-emotional content) are less strongly related to levels of commitment at both organizational and unit level, than are vertical communications (strategic information and communication with management). In addition, it was shown that vertical communication from senior management predicts organizational commitment best, whereas commitment with the unit is predicted better by vertical communication at that level. Results are inconsistent with approaches to commitment in organizations and teams that assume commitment stems from interpersonal relations, but more consistent with approaches to organizational commitment based on a social identity approach which tend to focus on social-level antecedents of commitment and identification.

Appeal of Playing Online First Person Shooter Games

First Person Shooter Games (FPSG) such as Counter Strike are often the subject of public concern. Surprisingly, there is no published research available about playing these games. We conducted an exploratory Internet survey (n 5 751) in order to gather information about who the players of online first person shooters are, and why they spend time on playing this particular kind of video game. The results of our survey on the one hand confirmed the stereotype of the gamer as it is often presented in popular media: the players of online FPS were indeed almost exclusively young men (mean age about 18 years) who spend a lot of their leisure time on gaming (about 2.6 h per day). We also found that the most committed gamers, that is, the ones who were members of a (semi)professional clan, scored highest on motives with respect to competition, and challenge in comparison with members of amateur clans and online gamers who had not joined a clan. On the other hand, our results cast doubt on the accuracy of the stereotype. This study showed clearly that online FPSG are not played in isolation. More than 80% of our respondents were member of a clan. Also, the regression analysis showed that the social interaction motive was the strongest predictor of the time actually spend on gaming.

Health-Related On-Line Forums: What's the Big Attraction?

This study investigates what motivates people to make use of health-related online forums, and how people feel that using these forums helps them in coping with their situation. Results are based on an online questionnaire (N = 189) among users of a variety of health forums. Findings show an overall positive effect of using forums on the degree to which people are better able to cope with the situation they are facing, both socially and with their condition. This especially holds for people who find forums a convenient tool for inclusion or gathering information. A negative effect on coping, however, is found for people who primarily use forums for discussion. The study also shows that features that often are mentioned in literature on computer-mediated communication (i.e., the anonymity it affords, its text-based character, and the possibility it offers for network expansion) are recognized but appreciated differently by users. Users who feel stigmatized especially appreciate the anonymity of online forums, while people who are restricted in their mobility appreciate the possibilities for network expansion.

Two faces of anonymity : Paradoxical effects of cues to identity in CMC

This paper presents two experimental studies investigating the effects of presenting cues that provide information about the interactors – called cues to identity – in computer mediated communications (CMCs). Study 1 shows that even though cues to identity affected interpersonal evaluations, in making them more positive, the presence of these cues were associated with less certainty and less medium satisfaction for users with experience in online communication. Study 2 shows that when performing an online communication task, participants felt more certain, were more satisfied with the medium, and thought they had performed better in the absence of cues to identity. Thus, this study supports the widespread assumption that rich interactions (i.e., interactions that allow the transmission of cues to identity such as face-to-face) are superior in that they make the interaction more personal, but that these outcomes are not mirrored by the evaluation of the interaction. It is suggested that the presence of cues to identity positively affects interpersonal perceptions, but at the same time decreases perceptions of solidarity or entitativity.

It is all about being popular: The effects of need for popularity on social network site use

Prior research on predictors of social network site (SNS) use has mainly focused on the Big Five, narcissism, and self-esteem. Results have been inconsistent, and variance explained was rather low. Need for popularity (NfP) might be a better predictor of SNS use, because SNSs are ideal venues for people with a high NfP. Study 1 tested NfP, self-esteem, need to belong, entitlement, and vanity as predictors for a range of SNS behaviors; Study 2 replaced entitlement and vanity with narcissism and added the Big Five as predictors. SNS behaviors assessed were grooming, strategic self-presentation, profile enhancement, disclosure of feelings, routine use of SNS, and number of friends. Results showed that NfP was the strongest and most consistent predictor of SNS behaviors. This pattern indicates that NfP plays an important role in SNSs.

Parent Versus Child Reports of Parental Advertising Mediation: Exploring the Meaning of Agreement

In a survey among 360 parent-child dyads (children aged 8–12 years), parent and child reports of parental advertising mediation activities were examined. The first aim was to investigate how parent-child agreement in reporting mediation differed by family and child factors. Results showed that agreement was highest in communication-oriented families and between parents and girls. The second aim was to examine the role of agreement in predicting the mediation outcome (i.e., reduced materialism). Both measures predicted the mediation outcome, but its effectiveness was contingent on parent-child agreement. Mediation was most effective when parents and children both reported that parents often discussed advertising.

The Language of Extraversion: Extraverted People Talk More Abstractly, Introverts Are More Concrete

To understand the impact of personality, one needs to know how personality differences manifest themselves in language use. The present study investigates the link between extraversion and language abstraction. Participants’ spontaneous verbal utterances in face-to-face interactions were analyzed for language abstraction by applying the linguistic category model, which distinguishes predicate types that convey information in concrete or interpretative manner. We also applied the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) program to relate several word categories to extraversion and language abstraction. Results show significant positive correlations between extraversion and both language abstraction and self-reported level of interpretation. Language abstraction was also linked to LIWC variables (e.g., articles, numbers) previously shown to be related to extraversion. The findings suggest that the verbal style of extraverts is characterized by a higher level of abstract interpretation, whereas introverts tend to stick to concrete facts.

Finding care for the caregiver? Active participation in online health forums attenuates the negative effect of caregiver strain on wellbeing.

Abstract This paper focuses on how online health forums may benefit the wellbeing of caregivers. An online questionnaire of caregivers assessed caregiver strain, forum use, and mental and physical wellbeing. Results show a positive relation between caregiver strain and using online health forums to seek emotional support. Furthermore, we find that caregivers with higher levels of caregiver strain report lower mental and physical wellbeing. This relation is however moderated by using online health forums. While the amount of time spent on the online forums did not moderate the relation between caregiver strain and wellbeing, the amount of activity (i. e. the number of messages posted per week) did: Active participation in online health forums attenuates the negative effect of caregiver strain on wellbeing.These findings suggest that online forums are valuable for caregivers and that it is active contribution that matters, rather than simply visiting the online health groups.

Cues to identity in online dyads: Effects of interpersonal versus intragroup perceptions on performance

This article examines the impact of cues to personal identity on the quality of dyadic collaboration via computer-mediated communication systems. Study 1 (N = 180) shows that an absence of cues to personal identity resulted in more work satisfaction and better subjective performance. Analyses suggested that this effect was mediated by perceptions of shared identity that emerged in cueless dyads. Study 2 (N = 91) confirmed and extended these effects, showing parallel effects on objective performance. The effects of Study 1 were replicated among high identifiers but not low identifiers. This provides direct evidence that social identity played a role in enhancing the quality of dyadic collaboration. It also illustrates the distinction between interpersonal and intragroup processes in online interaction. We conclude that when individuals in a dyad consider themselves part of an overarching social group, anonymity can improve collaboration performance as a function of shared social identity.This article examines the impact of cues to personal identity on the quality of dyadic collaboration via computer-mediated communication systems. Study 1 (N = 180) shows that an absence of cues to personal identity resulted in more work satisfaction and better subjective performance. Analyses suggested that this effect was mediated by perceptions of shared identity that emerged in cueless dyads. Study 2 (N = 91) confirmed and extended these effects, showing parallel effects on objective performance. The effects of Study 1 were replicated among high identifiers but not low identifiers. This provides direct evidence that social identity played a role in enhancing the quality of dyadic collaboration. It also illustrates the distinction between interpersonal and intragroup processes in online interaction. We conclude that when individuals in a dyad consider themselves part of an overarching social group, anonymity can improve collaboration performance as a function of shared social identity.

The curious case of cyberchondria: A longitudinal study on the reciprocal relationship between health anxiety and online health information seeking.

The current study is the first to longitudinally investigate the reciprocal relationship between online health information seeking and health anxiety, i.e., cyberchondria. Expectations were that health anxious individuals who go online to find health information, experience an increase in health anxiety, which in turn will reinforce online seeking. A 4-wave longitudinal survey study among 5322 respondents aged 16-93 was conducted. Our results showed that individuals who are more health anxious than others, search online for health information more. Moreover, the results provided initial evidence for the expected reciprocal relationship between health anxiety and online health information seeking in respondents with non-clinical levels of health anxiety at the start of the study. However, this reciprocal relationship could not be found in a subsample of clinically health anxious individuals. Although for these individuals online health information seeking did not seem to exacerbate health anxiety levels, it might still serve as a maintaining factor of clinical health anxiety.