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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
Reexamining Media Capacity Theories using Workplace Instant Messaging
Yu-Ting Caisy Hung
Wei-Chang Kong
Ai-Ling Chua
Clyde Eirikur Hull
Department of
Information Systems
School of Computing
National University of
Singapore
[email protected]
Department of
Information Systems
School of Computing
National University of
Singapore
[email protected]
Department of
Information Systems
School of Computing
National University of
Singapore
chuaaili
@comp.nus.edu.sg
Department of
Management
College of Business
Rochester Institution of
Technology
[email protected]
Abstract
This study empirically examines the general
propositions of media capacity theories using a newer
and increasing popular communication medium:
Instant Messaging. We developed hypotheses based on
the proposition that synchronous communication
media would be perceived to be more effective for
convergence communication and asynchronous
communication media would be perceived to be more
suitable for conveyance communication.
These
hypotheses were tested using data collected from 81
IM users in four organizations by means of survey
instruments developed for this study. The results
suggested that although IM was perceived to be a
highly synchronous communication medium, it was not
perceived to be as effective for convergence
communication as for conveyance communication.
These results challenge the general propositions of
media capacity theories. Implications of the findings
are discussed.
1. Introduction
New information and communication technologies
(ICTs) such as Instant Messaging (IM) keep evolving
and finding new applications in organizational
communications. IM, a near-synchronous one-to-one
text-based
communication
medium,
although
originally intended to allow home internet users to
communicate with family and friends [14], has been
extensively adopted in workplaces [28]; [31] to support
informal communication [29]; [32]; [33]. This new
application of IM has provoked many studies and
discussions regarding how and when IM is used and
adopted, which features are used for what purposes,
and the nature of the unintended consequences of IM
use in workplaces [3]; [19]; [29].
Unique
characteristics of IM use such as multitasking [3]; [19];
[29] have been observed, challenging traditional
communication theories [30].
The task-technology fit (TTF) framework,
proposing a match between ICT characteristics and
task characteristics, has been applied to communication
in order to prescribe effective use of communication
media. Communication theories based on the TTF
framework, including media capacity theories, have
provided great insights into media selection, ICT
adoption and use, and ICT-mediated communications.
Media capacity theories state that effective
communication is more likely to be achieved by
matching media characteristics with communication
tasks. Specifically, media synchronicity theory (MST)
argues that individuals would prefer highly
synchronized communication media for convergence
communication and less synchronized media for
conveyance communication [12].
IM, a nearsynchronized communication medium, is mainly used
for informal communication involving quick questions,
clarifications, or keeping in touch [29]. This seems to
be contradictory to MST’s proposition. On the other .
hand, IM was also found to be used for complex work
discussions [19], which is consistent with the theory’s
proposition. Are these contradictory observations
caused by the level of familiarity between the
communication partners [4]; [12]? The main objective
of this study is to empirically examine the general
propositions of media capacity theories using IM.
2. Task-Technology Fit (TTF) in
Communication: Media Capacity Theories
The TTF framework, focusing on the notion of
matching technology characteristics with task
characteristics, has been widely applied to explain and
prescribe the use of information and communication
0-7695-2507-5/06/$20.00 (C) 2006 IEEE
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
technology (ICT) for effective organizational
communication and collaboration (e.g., [15]; [37];
[47]). TTF, as applied to communication, stresses the
fit between the message sender’s communication
intentions or goals and the communication medium’s
characteristics.
Daft
and
Lengel
[7]
view
task-related
communication as a process of information exchange
and processing, and argue that a communication action
is initiated either to reduce information uncertainty by
providing information or to clarify ambiguous issues
and reduce information equivocality (multiple
information explanations). This notion is in line with
Dennis and Valacich’s [12] argument that, regardless
of the nature of the task, individuals working together
perform two fundamental processes: conveyance and
convergence.
The conveyance of task-related
information focuses on the dissemination of a diversity
of information from many sources in order to share and
obtain as much relevant information as possible for
understanding the situation [12]. Communication
partners do not actively engage in disagreements or
qualifications of each other’s contributions [12]; [34].
Conversely, the convergence of task-related
information focuses on aligning various interpretations
of shared information to reach a common
understanding and to mutually agree that they have
achieved this understanding. It often involves critical
examination of each other’s messages and the
resolution of disagreements [12]; [34].
McGrath [23]; [24] argues that a group performs
three simultaneous functions as it works: the
production function (i.e., the performance of the task),
the group well-being function (i.e., coordination among
team members as a group), and member support
function (i.e., individual relationships with others).
Therefore, in addition to task-related communications,
people who work together also communicate to support
group well-being and individual members. Group
well-being emphasizes the contributions made to the
group itself as an intact and continuing social structure
[23]; [24]. In typical business environments, for
individuals working together in concert on a project,
communication concerning group well-being often
involves project management communication such as
establishing operating procedures and how the group
will proceed.
Individuals working together also
communicate to manage their interpersonal
relationships. Communication pertaining to member
support often involves social/relational information not
germane to the focal task [24]; [26]; [44]. Although
not directly related to the performance of the focal
task, social/relational interactions have been found to
be associated with positive outcomes, including better
decision quality and higher satisfaction [43]; [5]. In
sum, a communication act is initiated to convey taskrelated information, to converge meanings on taskrelated information, to manage the projects, or for
social/relational purposes.
Theories in ICT-mediated communication research
often describe communication media in terms of their
objective characteristics (assumed to be invariant
across users and context of use), and hence can be
categorized as media capacity theories.
Media
capacity theories state that media capabilities
supporting the processing of information vary along
dimensions such as media richness (the capacity of the
media to convey verbal/nonverbal cues and facilitate
shared meaning in a timely manner) [9] and social
presence (the degree to which individuals feel close)
[38]. Media capability is based on the combination
and configuration of various features such as
immediate feedback, multiple cues, language variety
[9], interactivity [46]; [40], multiple addressability
[35], and editability [35]. Synthesizing and extending
prior research, Dennis and Valacich [12] identified five
media features that influence the effectiveness and
efficiency of communication and subsequent
information processing.
These features include
immediacy of feedback (the extent to which a medium
enables rapid bi-directional communication), symbol
variety (the number of ways a medium allows
information to be encoded for communication),
parallelism (the number of simultaneous conversations
that can effectively take place), rehearsability (the
extent to which the medium enables the sender to
rehearse and fine tune a message before sending it),
and reprocessability (the extent to which a message can
be reexamined or processed again within the context of
the communication event).
Building upon Media Richness Theory’s (MRT’s)
proposition that for effective communication to occur,
the richness of the medium should match with the level
of message ambiguity [9], Dennis and Valacich [12]
proposed their theory of Media Synchronicity in order
to further refine the fit. In addition to the fit between
communication
media
characteristics
and
communication goals, their theory adds the additional
dimension of McGrath’s [23]; [24] group functions:
production, group well-being, and member support. In
brief, media synchronicity theory (MST) suggests that
communication effectiveness will be enhanced when
certain features of the communication media match
with or support the level of synchronous activity
necessary to perform conveyance or convergence
communication processes for the completion of
production, member support, and group well-being
functions. In general, media with low synchronicity
(low immediacy of feedback and high parallelism) are
preferred for communication in which conveyance is
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
the goal, while media with high synchronicity (high
immediacy of feedback and low parallelism) are
preferred for communication when convergence is the
goal.
Communication is more effective if the
communication medium is selected based on the
communication goals pertaining to the group functions.
Although these theories provided significant value
in enhancing the design, development, and use of ICTs
for supporting communication, empirical tests of these
theories have not provided consistent support,
especially with respect to newer ICTs (e.g., [21]; [45];
[11]). The assumptions about communication under
traditional media theories have been challenged in IM
communications [29]. Hence, we believe that there is a
need to reexamine and test the TTF notion in media
capacity theories using this now increasingly-popular
communication medium: Instant Messaging. The
follow section reviews prior studies of IM features and
use.
3. Instant Messaging (IM) Functions and
Uses
IM systems allow near-synchronous one-to-one textbased communication [29]. Similar to telephones, IM
systems are based on a dyadic “call” model [29], and
similar to chat, IM systems provides users a near-realtime text-based communication environment [3]; [29].
Even with these similarities, IM is unique in that it
provides awareness information about potential
communication partners [3]; [29] and that users often
have certain levels of controls over what can be “seen”
by others [29].
Prior IM studies suggest that IM is mainly used to
support informal communication that is impromptu,
brief, and context-rich [3]; [29]; [19]. IM is reported to
be used mainly for four functions including quick
questions and clarification, coordination and the
scheduling of work tasks, coordinating impromptu
social meetings, and keeping in touch with friends and
family [29]. However, with the increasing use of IM in
the workplace, it is also reported that workplace IM is
primarily used for complex work discussions [19];
[29]. It was also found that users show different
patterns of use depending on their intensity of use and
their experience with a communication partner [19];
[29], and that multitasking is quite common among
users using IM [3].
4. Research Hypotheses
Although it is acknowledged that a communication
medium may possess different levels of capability
depending on how it is configured and used [12]; [4],
IM is normally viewed as a synchronous or nearsynchronous communication medium [3]; [29].
According to MST, media synchronicity is defined as
“the extent to which individuals [work] together on the
same activity at the same time; i.e., have a shared
focus” ([12], p.5).
High synchronicity is often
associated with high immediacy of feedback and low
parallelism, while low synchronicity is often associated
with low immediacy of feedback and high parallelism.
IM is normally considered a medium with low to
medium symbol variety, medium to high immediacy of
feedback, low to medium rehearsability and
reprocessability, and low to medium parallelism [22].
Symbol variety, rehearsability, and reprocessability
were proposed by MST to be valuable for both
conveyance and convergence communication [9].
Hence, the perceived capacity of a medium in
conveyance and convergence communication is mainly
determined by its synchronicity (i.e., its immediacy of
feedback and its parallelism). IM can be described as a
communication medium with medium to high
synchronicity.
The task-technology fit notion described in media
capacity theories is further developed in the MST in
which the fit among three dimensions are addressed:
communication media characteristics, communication
tasks, and group functions [12]. Categorizing IM as a
communication medium with medium to high
synchronicity, we developed our hypotheses based on
the key MST proposition that individuals would prefer
a communication medium with low synchronicity for
conveyance communication and a communication
medium with high synchronicity for convergence
communication. The communication tasks associated
with the group functions include conveyance and
convergence communication for both production and
social (member support) functions and communication
for project management (group well-being). For
production and social communication, it is
hypothesized that:
H1 Individuals will perceive IM to be more
effective
for
production
convergence
communication than for production conveyance
communication.
H2 Individuals will perceive IM to be more
effective for social convergence communication
than for social conveyance communication.
Although, theoretically, project management
communication should include both conveyance and
convergence communication, it is difficult to
distinguish them in practice. Communication for
managing projects such as assigning responsibilities,
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
coordinating activities, and scheduling tend to be
shorter, less complex, and less likely to involve
multiple interpretations. Therefore, we treated project
communication as one single communication task that
involves mostly conveyance communication. IM
studies also reported that one main use of IM
communication is coordinating and scheduling work
tasks and social meetings [29]; [29]. Therefore, we
hypothesize that:
H3 Individuals will perceive IM to be effective for
project management communication.
In addition to predicting a fit among the three
dimensions, MST also proposes that the levels of
media
synchronicity
required
for
effective
communication will decrease as users gain
communication experience with each other [12]; [10].
Prior studies in ICT-mediated communication have
shown that with different levels of experience,
individuals interact differently [20]; [25]; [27]; [36]
due to different levels of established communication
norms [1][26][41][42]. IM studies also report that IM
users demonstrate different patterns of use between
heavy users and light users [19][29]. It was found that
heavy IM users tend to have many fast-paced short
interactions while light users tend to have longer and
slower interactions [19]. This indicated that light users
who might be less experienced in using IM may take
spend more time to achieve the same level of
communication effectiveness. Muller, et al. [29] also
observed that as users gain IM experience with each
other, their chat behaviors develop. Therefore, we
believe that experienced IM pairs will perceive IM to
be more effective than newly formed IM pairs. That is:
H4 Individuals will perceive IM to be more
effective for communications with partners with
whom they have greater IM experience than for
communication with partners with whom they
have less IM experience.
well as with one with whom they had just started IMing. These items were pilot tested in the same online
environment with 78 college students at a major
university in Singapore and a major university in
northeast America. The results and comments from the
pilot studies were used to revise and shorten that
questionnaire, resulting in a total of 53 questions in
addition to those for collecting demographic
information. A 5-point Likert-type scale (1=“Strong
Disagree”, 3=“Neutral”, and 5=“Strong Agree”) was
used for all non-demographical items.
5.1 Respondents
The URL of the online survey web site along with a
brief description of the purpose of the study was
distributed to employees working in the information
technology departments of an international banking
corporation headquartered in the United Kingdom, a
petroleum refinery headquartered in the Netherlands,
and a petrochemical corporation and a management
and IT consultancy headquartered in the United States.
A total of 81 useable responses were collected within a
two-week period. 50.6% of the respondents were male
and the largest groups of users were in the age range of
31-35 (33.9%), had 6-15 years of work experience
(58.02%), and were college degree holders (46.91%).
A wide variety of IM systems were used in these
organizations, including America Online Instant
Messaging (AIM), ICQ, Yahoo! Messenger,
MindAlign, and MSN/Windows Messenger. Among
these systems, MSN/Windows Messenger was the
most widely used. Pure text and emoticons were the
main features used in their IM communications. Other
features such as NetMeeting, Webcams, or group
conversation were seldom used.
74.1% of our
respondents used IM everyday and 13.6% used IM 2-3
times a week.
5.2 Questionnaire Validations
5. Methodology
The hypotheses were tested using data collected in
four multinational organizations through an online
survey web site. Survey items developed based on
prior studies in ICT-mediated communication [18] and
in IM functions and use [29] were used to measure
respondents’ perceived communication effectiveness
of using IM for production and social (non-work)
conveyance communication (PVEY and SVEY),
production and social (non-work) convergence
communication (PVGE and SVGE), and project
management (PM). Respondents were asked to answer
with respect to communicating with a communication
partner with whom they had been IM-ing for a while as
Items measuring the perceived communication
effectiveness of IM for the four communication tasks
were aggregated to form each construct. They were
then validated using confirmatory factor analysis
(CFA) based on Maximum Likelihood extraction
method with Promax rotations. Promax rotations were
used due to the assumption that these constructs were
correlated [17]. Based on the results, one item was
excluded from further analysis due to its unsatisfactory
loading (a loading less than .5). The remaining items
were then assessed using a correlation matrix. High
correlations were observed between items measuring a
construct, indicating convergent validity. Correlations
between items measuring different constructs were
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
lower than those measuring the same construct,
indicating discriminate validity. Scale reliabilities
were then tested using Cronbach’s α. All constructs
had reliabilities greater than .9.
The results,
summarized in Table 1, show that the constructs have
good validity and high reliabilities.
Table 1. Factor Loadings and Reliabilities (Factor loadings of less than 0.3 were suppressed.)
1. Effectively express work opinions
2. Easily clarify work-related questions
3. Clearly explain work-related information
4. Effectively remind colleagues work-related matters
5. Easily schedule work-related meetings
6. Effectively arrange work-related assignments
7. Easily plan project schedules
8. Effectively report current task status
9. Effectively debate work-related issues
10. Effectively resolve disagreements on work-related issues.
11. Effectively reach a solution to a work-related problem
12. Effectively keep in touch with friends and family
13. Effectively exchange social information
14. Easily make social appointment with friends and family
15. Effectively remind friends and family social-related matters
16. Effectively resolve differences in opinions
17. Effectively reach a solution on social matters
18. Effectively debate non-work related issues
PVGE
Factors
PM
SVEY
SVGE
.970
.931
.704
.550
.811
1.0841
.743
.944
.923
.879
.860
.837
.838
.769
.912
(Item 4
exclude
d)
Reliabilities
(Cronbach’s α)
1
PVEY
.948
.934
.825
.454
.936
.913
.953
.946
The factor loading larger than 1 was a result of Promax rotation when performing the factor analysis.
6. Analysis and Results
6.1 Perceived IM Media Capabilities
To validate that IM was indeed perceived as a highly
synchronous communication medium, respondents
were asked to assess its synchronicity and its five
media characteristics: immediacy of feedback,
parallelism, symbol variety, rehearsability, and
reprocessability. T-tests were used to examine their
perceived IM capabilities in these dimensions. The
results indicated that IM was perceived to be high
(i.e., significantly greater than 3=“Neutral”) on all
dimensions except for reprocessability (Table 2.). It
Table 2.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
is interesting to note that although high media
synchronicity should be associated with high
immediacy of feedback and low parallelism [12], our
respondents perceived IM to be both high on
immediacy of feedback (Item#1) and high on
parallelism (Item#3). It might be the case that our
respondents felt they could effective manage and
carry out IM conversations in multiple IM sessions
simultaneously. However, they did perceive IM to be
highly synchronized (Item#7). This indicated that IM
was indeed perceived as a communication medium
with high media synchronicity, supporting our
categorization of IM as a synchronized or nearsynchronized communication medium.
Perceived IM Media Capabilities
Item
IM allows me to get timely feedback from my communication partner.
IM provides me a set of symbols I need for effective communication.
IM allows me to effectively manage multiple conversations simultaneously.
IM allows me to take the time to carefully edit my message before sending it out.
When using IM, I do not feel pressed to send out my messages before careful
editing.
IM allows me to keep records of my IM messages for future reference.
IM allows me to carry out concurrent communication with my communication
partner.
N
81
81
81
81
Mean
3.67
3.48
3.70
3.30
T-Value (Sig.)
6.708 (.000)
5.469 (.000)
7.032 (.000)
2.620 (.011)
81
3.57
5.549 (.000)
81
3.12
.908 (.330)
78
3.97
15.430 (.000)
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
6.2 IM Experience with a Communication
Partner
As mentioned above, in order to validate that our
respondents were able to distinguish their evaluation
of IM communication with experienced IM partners
from communication with new IM partners, we asked
them to respond to questions regarding their use of IM
both with a person with whom they have been IM-ing
for a while and with one with whom they just started
IM-ing. Pair-wise comparisons were carried out to
see if our respondents indeed behave differently
according to the level of IM experience with a
communication partner (Table 3). It was found that
when IM-ing with a longstanding communication
partner, one knows when the best time is to contact
the partner, is less worried about causing
interruptions, is more likely to use abbreviations, and
spends less effort in editing the messages. However,
there was no significant difference in whether they
felt pressed to respond to an IM call. The results
indicated that, consistent with prior IM studies [19];
[29], users show different IM behaviors when
communicating with a longstanding IM partner and
with a new IM partner.
Table 3.
IM Behavior & IM Partnership
IM Behavior
Best Time to
Contact
Pressed to Respond
Worried about
Causing
Interruption
Use Abbreviations
Carefully Editing
IM Messages
Experience with
the IM Partner
(N)
Experienced (81)
New (81)
Experienced (80)
New (80)
Experienced (80)
Mean
3.47
2.99
3.18
3.11
2.50
TValue
(Sig.)
5.264
(.000)
.672
(.504)
New (80)
3.01
-4.446
(.000)
Experienced (80)
New (80)
Experienced (81)
New (81)
3.80
3.41
3.47
3.68
4.314
(.000)
-2.269
(.026)
6.3 Hypothesis Testing
Hypotheses 1, 2, and 4 were tested using a
Simultaneous Repeated Measures ANOVA [39] with
Experience with the IM Partners as the betweensubject factor and the five communication tasks as the
within-subject factor. The between-subject factor was
treated as a simultaneous administration of two
research conditions: longstanding parter and new
partner [39].
As the homogeneity of variance
assumption is violated in repeated measures designs,
an additional assumption of sphericity (or circularity)
was first tested. A more conservative F-value
(Greenhouse-Geisser F-Value) is used when the
assumption is violated [16].
Hypotheses 1 and 2 state that individuals will
perceive IM to be more effective for production and
social convergence communication than for
production and social conveyance communication.
The results indicated that there was a significant
within-subject effect on the five communication tasks
(F-Value=32.976, Sig.=.000). Bonferroni post-hoc
pair-wise comparisons indicated that individuals
perceived IM to be significantly more effective for
production conveyance communication than for
production convergence communication (Mean
Difference=.519, Sig.=.000) and more effective for
social conveyance communication than for social
convergence communication (Mean Difference=.602,
Sig.=.000). That is, the differences were statistically
significant in the opposite direction of the hypotheses.
Hypotheses 1 and 2 are not supported.
Hypothesis 4 states that individuals will perceive
IM to be more effective for communication with
partners with whom they have greater IM experience
than for communication with partners with whom
they have less IM experience.
No significant
between-subject effect was found (F-Value=1.272,
Sig=.261). That is, although individuals reported that
they behave differently with IM partners with whom
they have been IM-ing for a while than they do with
whom they just started IM-ing, they did not perceive
any significant difference in IM communication
effectiveness. The estimated effect size (ηp2) is .008,
and the observed power is .201. This hypothesis was
further examined using pair-wise comparison t-tests
on the five communication tasks.
The results
indicated that IM was perceived to be more effective
for production and social conveyance communication
with communication partners with whom one has
been IM-ing for a while than with new
communication partners (T-value=3.341, Sig.=.001
for
Production
Conveyance;
T-value=3.234,
Sig.=.002 for Social Conveyance). IM was perceived
to be more effective for project management with
experienced IM partners than with new partners (TValue=2.123, Sig.=.037). No significant difference
was found between the two groups for either
production or social convergence communication.
Hypothesis 4 is partially supported. There was no
interaction effect between communication tasks and
levels of communication experience with an IM
partner (F-Value=.858, Sig.=.441).
Hypothesis 3 states that individuals will perceive
IM to be effective for project management
communication. It was tested using T-tests on
perceived IM effectiveness for both experienced and
new partners. The results indicated that individuals
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Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
perceived IM to be effective for project management
with those with whom they have been IM-ing for a
while (T-Value=3.651, Sig.=.000) but do not perceive
IM to be effective for project management with those
with whom they just started IM-ing (T-Value=1.552,
Sig.=.132). Hypothesis 3 is partially supported.
7. Discussions and Conclusions
7.1 Discussion of Results
Our data indicated that although IM was considered
a highly synchronous communication medium, it was
not considered as effective for convergence
communication as for conveyance communication.
This finding does not support the prediction of media
capacity theories in general, and MST in specific, that
synchronous communication media will be more
effective for convergence communication than for
conveyance communication. This finding, however,
is consistent with findings from prior IM studies that
IM is mainly used for short, simple, and quick
communications [3]; [29]; [19]; [29].
This finding suggests that the use and perceptions
of a communication medium may be influenced by
how it was used and perceived before they were
introduced to the workplace. IM was originally
designed for real-time short text-based message
exchange and was intended to allow home Internet
users to communicate with family and friends [14].
Although IM is now better developed to include many
other features such as emoticons and is used in many
workplaces
for
work-related
communication,
individuals may still associate IM with the attributes
of “informal”, “short”, and “text-based”. Hence, IM
users may rely on these perceptions of IM when
assessing when to use IM for what purposes. This
may explain why IM is perceived to be more effective
for conveyance communication, even though it is
capable of supporting effective convergence
communication.
The level of communication experience with a
communication partner seemed to influence perceived
IM communication effectiveness for some
communication tasks. IM was perceived to be more
effective for conveyance communication (both
production and social) and project management with a
communication partner with whom one has been IMing for a while than with a new communication
partner. This is in consistent with MST [12] and
channel expansion theory [4] that media perceptions
change as one gains experience with the ICT and the
communication partner. The exception was for
convergence communication.
Although IM was
perceived to be more effective for convergence
communication as one gains experience [19], the
increase was not statistically significant. As IM has
been observed to be used for complicated work
discussions, it may be the case that our respondents
have not yet passed the threshold to sense the
difference.
Social influence, as depicted in social network
theories may be used to explain the influence of IM
partnerships on the use and perceptions of IM in a
workplace. Two network models have been proposed
to describe the social influence process – the
relational model (also known as cohesion) and the
positional model (also known as structural
equivalence) [2]; [7]. The relational model posits that
social influence operates via the mechanisms of
cohesion and solidarity. Individuals are said to be
influenced by relationships with others, or by people
with whom the individual has direct interactions and
enjoys close social proximity [2]; [6]. The positional
model suggests that individuals pay attention to
people who occupy positions similar to theirs in the
informal social structure – positionally similar others
(PSOs). In order to maintain an equal or even
superior standing with their PSOs, individuals may
use PSOs as social referents and behave in a similar
manner [13]. In other words, the relational ties or the
identification of PSOs act as referents of individuals’
behaviors. Regardless of whether the social influence
is exploited through the relational model or through
the positional model, the use and perception of IM in
workplaces may be socially ‘engineered’. Hence,
under the influence of their communication partners,
individuals may gradually develop a perception of
how IM should be used.
Project management communication often involves
both conveyance and convergence [12]. However,
our factor analysis shows that project management
communication was distinct from production and
social conveyance and convergence communication.
Our results indicate that IM was considered to be
effective for project management communication,
such as sending reminders, reporting task status, and
setting up appointments. This finding is consistent
with prior IM studies [3]; [29]; [19]; [29].
7.2 Implications
One of the interesting challenges of research on
technology is that technology itself is a moving target.
The results indicate that IM, a relatively new form of
ICT, does conform in some respects to the predictions
of media capacity theories. However, and of greater
interest, this newer form of ICT does not perfectly fit
the theoretical model. In the light of the inconclusive
7
Proceedings of the 39th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2006
results obtained to date for media capacity theories in
general, and, with the findings of this paper and that
of DeLuca and Valacich [10], MST in specific, we
feel that a theoretical adjustment is called for.
The
theoretical
adjustments
needed
to
accommodate IM are not large, but we must recognize
that as technology continues to evolve, further
theoretical revisions will be required – unless we
adjust our theories to accommodate both the current
state of media technologies and the arc of
technological evolution indicated by, for example,
this study’s findings. Media characteristics that have
traditionally been mutually exclusive may coexist in
some future ICT – in no way invalidating the basic
premise of MST, but dramatically affecting its
ramifications and application to real organizations and
people. In addition, our findings also suggested that
the use and perceptions of a communication medium
seems to be greatly influenced by users’ prior
perceptions of the medium as well as by their social
networks. Thus, the assessment of a communication
medium regarding its use needs to incorporate social
factors, such as socially established perceptions of the
medium in addition to utility factors including the fit
between media characteristics and communication
purposes.
very strongly – by their experiences with other media,
particularly media with similar characteristics. A
valuable potential study might look at IM and similar
communication media over time, with a focus on the
transitions among them and user perceptions of
usability over time.
7.4 Conclusions
This study reexamined and tested the TTF notion
proposed by MST on a relatively new ICT – IM. The
support for the theories was mixed. Contrary to the
theories’ prediction, IM, as a highly synchronous
communication medium, is not considered to be as
effective for convergence communication as for
conveyance communication. IM is perceived to be
effective for project management communication. As
one gains communication experience with an IM
partner, his or her perceived IM effectiveness for
conveyance and project management communication
increases. However, this increase is not significant
for convergence communication. The results call for
further refinement of media capacity theories in
general, and media synchronicity theory in specific.
8. References
7.3 Limitations and Future Directions
One limitation of this study is that the data were
obtained entirely from primary sources by means of a
survey. We used this approach because our variables
of interest were perceptual, and thus unavailable
through secondary sources.
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incorporating our approach with secondary data might
shed further insight. A study of work-related IM
perceptions across multiple organizations with
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Another limitation of this study is that we studied
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period of time. A related issue has to do with the
order in which users have been introduced to the
media in question.
Users’ perceptions of one
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