Prosody of Text Communication? How to Induce Synchronization and Coherence in Chat Conversations

ABSTRACT

In the current study, we examined the consequences of adding prosodic cues to text communication by allowing users to observe the process of message creation while engaged in dyadic conversations. In the first condition, users interacted through a traditional chat that requires pressing “enter” to make a message visible to an interlocutor. In another, text appeared on the screen simultaneously as the sender was writing it, letter after letter (Synchat condition), so that users could observe the varying rhythm of message production, precise timing of message appearance, typos, and their corrections. The results show that the ability to observe the dynamics of message production had a twofold effect on the social interaction process. First, it enhanced the relational aspect of communication – interlocutors synchronized their emotional states during the interaction, their communication included more statements on relationship building, and they evaluated the Synchat medium as more personal and emotionally engaging. Second, it increased the coherence of communication, reflected in greater continuity of the topics raised in Synchat conversations. The results are discussed from the interaction design (IxD) perspective.

Notes

1. The Cohen’s statistic is the standardized difference between means, calculated as the difference in the two groups’ means divided by the average of their standard deviations. The value d of 0.8 and above is considered ‘large’, 0.5 ‘medium’ and 0.2 as ‘small’ (c.f. Rice & Harris, 2005).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the grant DEC-2012/05/N/HS6/03937 received by KZ funded by the National Science Centre of Poland (https://www.ncn.gov.pl/)


Notes on contributors

Karolina Ziembowicz

Karolina Ziembowicz is an adjunct at the Maria Grzegorzewska University. She completed her PhD project at Psychology Department, University of Warsaw. Her scientific interests include the dynamics of social interaction, quantification of social emergence processes, influence of technology on human behavior.

Andrzej Nowak

Andrzej Nowak is a professor at Psychology Departments at University of Warsaw, Poland and Florida Atlantic University, USA. His primary focus is the dynamical approach to social psychology, social influence, computer simulations of psychological and social processes, psychology and new technology, conflict, behavioral economy.