Effectiveness of Computer-Mediated Communications Tools
in Developing Organizational Trust
1. Context of the Problem (5)
Trust building is an important consideration in long-distance communication and collaboration for an increasing number of organizations. With modern communications technology, relationships are being developed and maintained through the internet such as supply-purchaser relationship, customer service personnel-client relationship, as well as main company-satellite business unit linkages. ( 2000) A number of computer-mediated communications (CMC) devices exist in the market offering varying capabilities and differing in prices. This creates the problem of determining which device to purchase for the organization. Although there are certain tasks that are accomplished regardless of the type of CMC device used, there are also particular tasks highly affected by the type of device used in terms of usage context and effectiveness. ( 1994)
This means that although trust building is recognized as important in trust development, the determination of the mode of long-distance communication remains problematic. There is need to determine the different modes of long-distance communication and collaboration available to business organizations and determine which ones are effective for particular circumstances. The research seeks to identify existing computer-mediated communications technologies and test the effectiveness of these tools in developing trust among working groups to know the strengths of weaknesses of the different devices and recommend devices that effectively work in certain circumstances.
Interpersonal trust is an aspect of organizational communications and collaboration that would likely be affected by the medium of computer-mediated communications. Trust pertains to the propensity of individuals to be in a state of vulnerability due to the positive expectation from the actions of others ( 1995). This means that individuals capitalize on the expectation of positive response from other people so they share information or collaborate with other individuals for the accomplishment of tasks or support business objectives.
Although this definition covers the social element of trust that applies to business settings, there is also need to develop a working definition for trust that applies to the business context. In business firms, trust depends more upon perceptions of the capabilities of other members of the team relative to their contribution to the group task as well as security limitations on information sharing. This is different from the trust that occurs in purely social settings. The research also seeks to provide a definition of trust in the business context.
Trust development is important in business settings for a number of reasons. First is the role of trust in facilitating cooperation between co-workers, business units, or partner businesses in order to derive effectively predetermined objectives. Without trust, teams, units and partners geographically separated will not be able to share crucial information openly to support decision-making and policy formulation or equitably agree on transactions, engage in contracts and monitor fulfillment. ( 1998) Second is the probability that workers make changes on the nature and workings of existing collaborations due to the need for a more involved coordination or the limitations of existing communication systems. Without trust, the people affected by the change may not accept the change, react adversely to the change being introduced, or refuse to cooperate in the system change. ( 2000) In the instance of non-acceptability of the change due to distrust, individual workers may avoid the change altogether resulting to the limitation in individual and aggregate productive capacity. ( 2000) Third is the positive relationship between degree of trust and the efficiency. In organizations with higher levels of trust among the individual members and business units, the organization is able to adapt easily to changing situations. (1998)
Existing researches provide that trust building is more difficult in online settings relative to person-to-person interactions. According to (1998), an experiment involving a six-member team faced with a social dilemma showed that the team was able to resolve the dilemma in a less amount of time through person-to-person interaction when compared to the time it took them to address the problem through online interaction, particularly through electronic mail. A study conducted by (2000) supported this findings through the data derived from the experiment changing the mode of communication between three people from personal interaction to email collaboration showing that trust became inhibited. However, the study also mentioned that the inhibitions decreased with time, which could be attributed to the adjustments made by the group members in using email as channel of interaction. In the review of literature on computer-mediated communication, conducted by (1997), results showed that the effectiveness of text-based modes of communication depends upon the nature of communication content. Communications with high levels of social-emotive contents were more effectively sent to the recipient through personal interaction and less effectively in text-based communication such as email.
The researchers show different results. One research shows that trust became inhibited with the use of computer-mediated communications such as email. Inhibitions then adversely affect the sharing of information among working groups so that this decreases work efficiency. Another research agrees that utilizing computer-mediated communications inhibits trust in working groups but also provides that the inhibition diminish as the members of the work group are able to adjust to the new mode of communication and able to establish trust among themselves. Still another research shows that the ability of computer-mediated communications to support trust development depends upon the content of the communication. Socially emotive contents are best communication personally while non-emotive contents are effectively communicated personally or through text-based communications such as email. The differences in research results, although not completely conflicting, needs clarification. The current research seeks to determine the nature of the relationship of trust development and computer-mediated communication devices. In doing so, the research would also be able to clarify the nature and extent of significance of the different computer-mediated communication devices in facilitating trust building among members of the organization and its business units.
Emerging issues in identifying the relationship between trust building and computer-mediated communications poses a challenge to organizations and working virtual teams to find ways of developing and maintaining sufficient levels of trust online. Most researches on the topic focus on text-based online communications. This has been shown to increase social inhibition among virtual working teams, reduce pressures to conform to the content particularly if this is a directive or a necessary part of group task accomplishment, and encourage other expressions of uninhibited behavior. This implies that the exclusive use of text-based communication and collaboration may be ineffective the developing trust. There is need to investigate the effectiveness of other CMC devices.
There are synchronous CMC technologies available to business organizations such as online chatting, audio conferencing, and audio-video communications. The effect of the different CMC devices is expected to vary because of the different capabilities that these offer to business firms. According to (1984) contend that the level of participation in text-based communications is equal because one member of the virtual team responds to the queries or answers of other members as these arrive. However, in the case of videoconferencing, (2001) provide that this channel of communication may have an effect opposite to text-based collaboration. Results of the field study to determine the effects of multimedia audio communications on the patterns of communication of top management and virtual teams during business meetings show that the members of the conferencing group holding higher positions verbally control the discussions and direct the flow of the meeting. This reveals that multimedia communications can exaggerate the status of conferencing groups relative to the lack of status exaggeration in text-based communications. It seems that in the case of audio-based meetings, non-verbal clues are lacking for the participants to read and determine the pace and shifts in taking turns. This coupled with the conscious knowledge of the status of the speaker as well as subconscious tendency to compare status difference and perceive one’s status as less favourable than the speaker then discourages participation in the audio discussions. Status consciousness, highlighted by the limited ability in perceiving non-verbal cues, may have beneficial or detrimental effect on group communication and dynamics.
These researches focusing on the different computer-mediated communication technologies provide that the different tools also have varying effects. In some instances, text-based communications is beneficial such as in taking turns to communicate but detrimental in other aspects such as synchronization of communications and development or maintenance of trust. Multimedia communications also offer both advantage and disadvantage. An advantage is the synchronization of communications so that members of virtual teams are able to respond immediately other members and vice versa. Another advantage is the facilitation of trust building through video conferencing where the parties are able to read each other’s cues and associate faces with messages for enhanced credibility. However, a disadvantage is in audio conferencing, where the lack of perceivable cues enhances status differences and discourages the participation of participants holding lower status.
Although the research conducted by (2001) focused on the link between computer-mediated communications and status consciousness in business meetings, the results have significant implications on the current research. One is the importance of having non-verbal cues. Trust building is enhanced with verbal cues because people take hints from the facial expressions of other people. These cues indicate the level of commitment and conviction that a speaker has over the content being communicated so that if there is perceived weak conviction then other members may ask questions or confirm the validity of the statement. Processes of questioning and confirming enhance trust development necessary in the accomplishment of virtual tasks. Another is the advantages and disadvantages of different CMC technologies. There is no absolutely effective single tool because efficient utilization depends upon communication needs and contexts.
Existing literature
The question then arises, do richer communication channels such as video have effects such as reduced social presence? Would trust development be inhibited in a videoconference? What about a phone conference? Business and individuals make expensive decisions about travel, about purchasing of equipment, and meeting venues based on assumptions about the different media’s effectiveness. How well might these assumptions hold up in
a large, controlled experiment? This research will examine trust development in a set of four media conditions. This should clarify whether trust is inhibited in video and audio when compared to f-t-f. Careful analysis of this multi-condition data may also help clarify which affects of CMC arise in which conditions.
2001, The impact of status and audio conferencing technology on business meetings, International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, vol. 54, no. 6, pp. 857-876.
Abstract:
1. Context of the Problem (5)
2. Statement of the Problem (1/2)
3. Research Question/Hypothesis and Subquestions/Subhypotheses (1/2)
4. Significance of the Study (1/2-1)
5. Research Design and Methodology (5)
6. Organization of the Study (1)
7. Proposed Reference List
Step 1. Context of the Problem sets up the research statement with background, purpose and perhaps some support from the literature or acceptable literature alternatives. It is here that the DRP problem or issue is discussed and gives a transitory explanation of what the completed research work-product will most likely contain.
Step 2. Statement of the Problem. The DRP research statement of the problem is a three part statement: an introductory sentence, a problem sentence and a transition/closing sentence.
Introductory Sentence: The first sentence introduces the topic of the
research problem, that is of primary interest to the DRP student.
Example: �Organizational Behavior touts itself as a field that extracts
its contents from various social sciences.�
The Problem Sentence: The second sentence presents the structure from
which the research question will be derived. Example:
�A review of academic and professional journals reveals no studies
illustrating the Organizational Behavior/Social Science linkage.�
The Transition/Closing Sentence: The third sentence is a transition or
closing sentence. Example: �Universities use Organizational Behavior
text�s interdisciplinary approach to educate business professionals about
behaviors occurring within organizations and the Organizational
Behavior/Social Science relationship.�
Anyone with or without expertise in this intended research area of
interest can immediately understand where the DRP research effort is headed
and why. This provides a basis for how the DRP student will relate the
DRP research conclusion back to the statement of the problem, and
either their primary research question or hypothesis as the research moves
forward.
Step 3. Research Question/Hypothesis and Subquestions/Subhypotheses.
The research question or hypothesis is derived from the statement of the
problem. This provides a clear basis for the research to be done. The
research question/ hypothesis can be broken into manageable
subquestions or subhypotheses.
Example: Research Question and Subquestions
The purpose of this research is to determine how universities use
Organizational Behavior�s interdisciplinary approach to educate business
professionals about behaviors within organizations, and the Organizational
Behavior/Social Science relationship? To answer this question, the
following subquestions will be addressed:
1. What is Organizational Behavior�s core body of knowledge and
interdisciplinary approach? (Qualitative)
2. What Social Science concepts influence the Organization Behavior
field�s core body of knowledge and the correlation between them?
(Quantitative)
3. How are business professionals educated about behaviors occurring in
organizations? (Qualitative)
Step 4. Significance of the Study. The Significance of the Study
section is the researcher�s opportunity to explain why it is a significant
research problem under study in theory and/or practice. The following
example of a declaration of significance may be helpful:
Example: Significance of the Study
This case study is important because it recognizes the value and
benefits of conducting e-business on the WWW.
The study will help clarify the nature of warranted change and how a
significant segment of the Corporate structure communicates strategically
in business and the professions. This research is also of importance
because it will add to the growing base of knowledge about e-business and
the WWW Global market place. A third consideration of the significance
is that much more can be learned about what companies can do to be
successful and to circumvent initial failure in the first place. From a
qualitative and
naturalistic-ethnographical setting it is expected much will be learned
including management and the need for effective strategic
communication.
To the extent, this study reveals how e-business can be successful,
Corporate Management may or may not need to be concerned with whether or
not organizational policy changes are necessary, or whether the
phenomena is a matter of environmental business changes of the day, then the
study will have contributed to a better understanding that is unique to
the larger WWW e-business community.
Step 5. Research Design and Methodology. There are three kinds of DRP
research design�qualitative, quantitative and triangulation. The first
sentence of the section explains, which kind of design the student will
use.
Qualitative research focuses on understanding phenomena, rather than
predicting as in the application of traditional quantitative or
statistical research. Triangulation is the integration of both qualitative and
quantitative (mixed-method) research designs, combining both into a
single research strategy to increase the quality of results.
The methodology section describes the procedures the DRP will follow
(content analyses, face-to-face interviews, questionnaires, quantitative
analyses, etc.), describes the information and/or data that the student
will collect, and describes how the student will develop conclusions to
address the purpose of the study.
Step 6. Organization of the Study. This section is the researcher�s
opportunity to present the research chapters and sections in brief,
describing how the total research effort will be presented. In particular, it
means each research chapter is presented in four to five sentences
indicating what actions the researcher will perform in the research
process.
Step 7. Proposed Reference List. This is a preliminary report of at
least ten potential sources for the research effort. This is presented in
bibliographic format, in alphabetical order by author�s last names.
Purpose What does the researcher want to know and why does the
researcher want to know? What does the researcher want to be able to decide or
offer as a result of the research? Why?
Population Who or what are the sources of the information or data, and
how can the research sources participate with interest, whether or not
they are beneficiaries of the research results? For instance, are they
providing funding, other resources or support, is it upper management,
are they employees, customers, neighbors, associations, etc. Why?
Data Needs What kinds of information or data (from: employees, groups,
customers, office documents, files, or some other media: quantitative
or qualitative), are needed to conduct an analysis, draw conclusions,
make decisions or recommendations? Who?
Data Collection How can data or information be collected using a
reasonable methodology, e.g., surveys, questionnaires, interviews, examining
documentation, or a literature review? Why?
Time Line When is the information or data needed; when must it be
collected? What are the identifiable resources available to support
information or data collection? Why?
Significance Why or how is the study important? Who or what will
benefit from the research and work-product? Why?
The design of the DRP provides the overall structure for the procedures
the DRP student follows, the information and data that the DRP student
collects, and the information or data analysis the DRP student
conducts. Simply put, the research design is the most significant part of the
DRP proposal. Once a supervising faculty member approves the proposal,
it becomes the DRP Chapter 1 � Introduction.
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