How do anonymity, group size, and proximity
influence participation and communication in CMC groups?
By not knowing the group
members in a CMC group can be beneficial.
This is because people can communicate more freely with one another, not
worried about the judgments others will make. For example last year I had to do
a group project through CMC. Everyone was comfortable to share ideas with one
another. Group size can be tricky with this type of communication. I believe
that communication will be more effective because it will be convenient to
everyone to meet up. More ideas can be thrown out as well. I know for me I tend
to not participate as much in a big group during F2F because I feel like my
voice and ideas get drowned. As
for participation, I believe it will be easier since no one will seem to be
intimated. Since we can see others we would not be afraid to share. For
proximity CMC allows everyone in the group to communicate with each other
anywhere.
I agreed with you about not knowing your members of the CMC group as being beneficial. Especially dealing with an issue or task at hand, many barriers such as our personal involvement with other members would hinder the flow of constructive criticism and the creativity in thought. While I do not personally like to work in CMC groups, I have noticed it is easier to bounce off ideas and to be critical in judgment which is critical for the group. When working in F2F, contrary to your personal experiences, I have found it easier to speak up and articulate my ideas better in person. At the same time, I have noticed it is easier for some group members to feel left out or not heard because there is no barrier for facilitation in F2F compared to CMC. Overall how CMC and F2F operate within groups is indeed interesting as you noted.
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading you post this week and thought you did a good job explaining anonymity, group size and proximity. For CMC groups, not knowing other people can be a very beneficial thing for the group. It is easier for one to give their input when they don’t know the other people that will be reading/judging what they say. Group size matters at times and more people equals more diversity. For proximity, like you said it can be easier got people to meet up if need be as well as for people that are far/ they can communicate with others anywhere. So being close can be an advantage. CMC is easier for group setting and everyone had more input it seems. Good post.