Sara Kiesler

Internet Paradox Revisited

Kraut et al. (1998) reported negative effects of using the Internet on social involvement and psychological well-being among new Internet users in 1995–96. We called the effects a “paradox” because participants used the Internet heavily for communication, which generally has positive effects. A 3-year follow-up of 208 of these respondents found that negative effects dissipated. We also report findings from a longitudinal survey in 1998–99 of 406 new computer and television purchasers. This sample generally experienced positive effects of using the Internet on communication, social involvement, and well-being. However, consistent with a “rich get richer” model, using the Internet predicted better outcomes for extraverts and those with more social support but worse outcomes for introverts and those with less support.

Managerial Response to Changing Environments: Perspectives on Problem Sensing from Social Cognition.

? 1982 by Cornell University. 000 1-8392/82/2704-0548/

Group decision making and communication technology

00.7 5 This paper characterizes managerial problem sensing, a necessary precondition for managerial activity directed toward organizational adaptation, as composed of noticing, interpreting, and incorporating stimuli. It then reviews the constituent social cognition processes that make certain kinds of problem-sensing behavior, including errors, relatively likely to occur. Implications for the organizational issues of crisis, chance events, break points, and extreme change are explored.

Response Effects in the Electronic Survey

Abstract Advances in computing and telecommunications technology are changing how people can meet and make group decisions. Technological changes help people cross physical, social, and psychological boundaries, and have secondary effects on group behavior and decision making. Experiments show that, compared with a face-to-face meeting, a computer-mediated discussion leads to delays; more explicit and outspoken advocacy; “flaming;” more equal participation among group members; and more extreme, unconventional, or risky decisions. Technological and social psychological variables that cause these effects in laboratory groups do not scale at equal rates. Technological change in organizational group decision making can lead to outcomes not seen in the laboratory, which makes it essential to do field research. Three phenomena observed in field studies are redistributions of work time, relative advantages in participation for peripheral workers, and increases in complexity of group organization. Experimental and field studies on these technology effects are useful not just as an “impact statement” for those considering technological change; this research also can put a new light on basic processes in which we have always had an interest.

A Meta-Analytic Study of Social Desirability Distortion in Computer- Administered Questionnaires, Traditional Questionnaires, and Interviews

IN ALL SCIENTIFIC ENDEAVOR the available tools affect the questions one can ask and the data one can collect. In this report, we examine a new tool in survey research, the electronic or computer-mediated survey. In the last two decades, electronic computers have come to figure in many phases of survey research-instrument design, sampling, moni- toring of work in the field, coding and editing, data entry, data clean- ing, scale and index construction, data base organization, data base retrieval, statistical analysis, documentation, and report writing (Kar- Abstract This report examines the electronic survey as a research tool. In an electronic survey, respondents use a text processing program to self-administer a computer-based questionnaire. As more people have access to computers, electronic surveys may be- come widespread. The electronic survey can reduce processing costs because it auto- mates the transformation of raw data into computer-readable form. It can combine advantages of interviews (e.g., prompts, complex branching) with those of paper mail surveys (e.g., standardization, anonymity). An important issue is how the electronic survey affects the responses of people who use it. We conducted an experimental sample survey on health attitudes, behaviors, and personal traits using two forms of administra- tion: electronic and paper mail. Closed-end responses in the electronic survey were less socially desirable and tended to be more extreme than were responses in the paper survey. Open-ended responses that could be edited by respondents were relatively long and disclosing. These findings are consistent with other research on computer-mediated communication, raising general issues about using computers to collect self-report data. Sara Kiesler is a Professor of Social Sciences and Social Psychology, and Lee Sproull

Applying Common Identity and Bond Theory to Design of Online Communities

A meta-analysis of social desirability distortion compared computer questionnaires with traditional paper-and-pencil questionnaires and face-to-face interviews in 61 studies (1967-1997; 673 effect sizes). Controlling for correlated observations, a near-zero overall effect size was obtained for computer versus paper-and-pencil questionnaires. With moderators, there was less distortion on computerized measures of social desirability responding than on the paper-and-pencil measures, especially when respondents were alone and could backtrack. There was more distortion on the computer on other scales, but distortion was small when respondents were alone, anonymous, and could backtrack. There was less distortion on computerized versions of interviews than on face-to-face interviews. Research is needed on nonlinear patterns of distortion, and on the effects of context and interface on privacy perceptions and on responses to sensitive questions.

Collaborative Research Across Disciplinary and Organizational Boundaries

Online communities depend upon the commitment and voluntary participation of their members. Community design — site navigation, community structure and features, and organizational policies — is critical in this regard. Community design affects how people can interact, the information they receive about one another and the community, and how they can participate in community activities. We argue that the constraints and opportunities inherent in online community design influence how people become attached to the community and whether they are willing to expend effort on its behalf. We examine two theories of group attachment and link these theories with design decisions for online communities. Common identity theory makes predictions about the causes and consequences of peoples attachment to the group as a whole. Common bond theory makes predictions about the causes and consequences of peoples attachment to individual group members. We review causes of common identity and common bond, and show how they result in different kinds of attachment and group outcomes. We then show how design decisions, such as those focused on recruiting newcomers versus retaining existing members, constraining or promoting off-topic discussion, and limiting group size or allowing uncontrolled growth, can lead to common identity or interpersonal bonds among community members, and consequently to different levels and forms of community participation by those so motivated.

Matching robot appearance and behavior to tasks to improve human-robot cooperation

Scientific and engineering research increasingly involves multidisciplinary collaboration, sometimes across multiple organizations. Technological advances have made such cross-boundary projects possible, yet they can carry high coordination costs. This study investigated scientific collaboration across disciplinary and university boundaries to understand the need for coordination in these collaborations and how different levels of coordination predicted success. We conducted a study of 62 scientific collaborations supported by a program of the US National Science Foundation in 1998 and 1999. Projects with principal investigators (PIs) in more disciplines reported as many positive outcomes as did projects involving fewer disciplines. By contrast, multi-university, rather than multidisciplinary, projects were problematic. Projects with PIs from more universities were significantly less well coordinated and reported fewer positive outcomes than projects with PIs from fewer universities. Coordination mechanisms that brought distant researchers together physically slightly reduced the negative impact of collaborations involving multiple universities. We discuss implications for theory, practice, and policy.

Predicting human interruptibility with sensors

A robots appearance and behavior provide cues to the robots abilities and propensities. We hypothesize that an appropriate match between a robots social cues and its task improve the peoples acceptance of and cooperation with the robot. In an experiment, people systematically preferred robots for jobs when the robots humanlikeness matched the sociability required in those jobs. In two other experiments, people complied more with a robot whose demeanor matched the seriousness of the task.

The HomeNet field trial of residential Internet services

A person seeking another persons attention is normally able to quickly assess how interruptible the other person currently is. Such assessments allow behavior that we consider natural, socially appropriate, or simply polite. This is in sharp contrast to current computer and communication systems, which are largely unaware of the social situations surrounding their usage and the impact that their actions have on these situations. If systems could model human interruptibility, they could use this information to negotiate interruptions at appropriate times, thus improving human computer interaction.This article presents a series of studies that quantitatively demonstrate that simple sensors can support the construction of models that estimate human interruptibility as well as people do. These models can be constructed without using complex sensors, such as vision-based techniques, and therefore their use in everyday office environments is both practical and affordable. Although currently based on a demographically limited sample, our results indicate a substantial opportunity for future research to validate these results over larger groups of office workers. Our results also motivate the development of systems that use these models to negotiate interruptions at socially appropriate times.