Social Presence Theory and Miscommunication

Communication is a tricky field to navigate - we are constantly encoding and decoding messages - however, the meaning we associate with the messages we are encoding might get decoded into an entirely different message by someone else. Misinterpretations happen in every medium, whether it's text messages, emails, or even face to face - however, we're more prone to miscommunication in computer mediated communication due to the lack of cues. The Social Presence Theory can help us understand this minor phenomenon: with less cues, the worse the understanding of the message and the speaker. Tying into the Social Presence Theory is Media Richness, which can also have a large impact on our message. CMC like texting or emails is more lean in information, while face to face, phone calls and video calls are more rich in information. Forms of CMC, like texting or email, erase important cues like paralanguage, body language and proxemics. If we have a message simply encoded in text, there are less cues to help clarify the message intended and thus there is more ambiguity. (For an example, see Calvin's clever use of this "loophole.")



This article by Harvard Business Review discusses the frequent miscommunication faced in the workplace, and offers advice on how to avoid misinterpretations when using CMC. Their steps including acknowledging and fighting the thought that people understand what we mean, to understand that different people communicate better in different ways, to realize that we communicate less information than we think we are and to "amplify the signal", to remember that sometimes the medium you use can send a message as well, reply promptly, write well polished text, and know that everyone should expect problems eventually.

We can use these techniques to help combat the weaknesses of computer mediated communication, and help increase our social presence. Making sure that our emails and messages aren't sloppily written helps us to better represent ourselves so our social presence among others will be viewed more positively. Making sure that our message isn't relying on the other person interpreting our cues the same way we would helps to dwindle down on the number of misunderstandings we might suffer. Knowing the best way to communicate with someone helps their image of us, and increases the odds of our message getting through and getting understood successfully. Knowing what medium/media is most appropriate to use in relation to the message you are trying to send will help make sure that you aren't mixing signals. If you take forever to reply to a message, it'll definitely send a negative image of yourself - and sometimes replying too fast (as some guys will attest) can also be seen as being "too eager." Timing is crucial in communication and depending on when you reply it could be seen as a negative. Finally - it's important that they note that you will run into problems eventually and be prepared to face and handle them!

CMC is a useful tool for communicating with others around (and not so around) us, and is invaluable with staying in contact with those far away from us. However, it doesn't mean it should be necessarily a thoughtless progress, especially in the workplace. It's important to keep in mind various things like context, medium, timing, grammar, spelling, and so on to make sure we're sending the most efficient message possible. While we don't have to go "Mission Impossible" and critically analyze every text message we send out, it is something good to keep in mind to make sure you get through what you'd like to get through.