[Air-l] FWD: gor and aior

[jhuns]

About two weeks ago I attended the fourth GOR (German Online Research)
conference in Göttingen, Germany. I'd like to give a brief summary of my
impressions and ask for reactions, because an idea formed in my mind during
the conference weekend. I remember conversation at and after AIoR about
expanding our association, and preferably also organizing a meeting outside
the US. I think it would be a great idea to strive for a joint meeting with
GOR sometime in the (near) future.

About 320 people attended this year's conference, approximately 50% of which
were practitioners. To me that was very refreshing. The practitioners bring
in applied ideas, different foci, and pointed questions. Most academicians
at GOR seemed to have a psychology background, a general orientation that
became clear also through the choice of keynote speakers, Katelyn McKenna
and Tom Postmes. Most participants were German, but there were also Swiss,
Greek, British, at least one Russian, and at least two or three who'd flown
in from the States (besides Katelyn and me), and maybe some other
nationalities that I didn't catch.

The conference, filling two days, always offered four parallel panels
lasting 90 minutes, each made up of three 30 minute presentations. Panel
topics included Individual Differences Online, E-commerce, Market Research,
Basic Research, Learning and Teaching, Web-based Experimentation, and CMC in
Organizations. There were also poster sessions. Most sessions were held in
German, but during each time slot, there was at least one English
presentation. Each panel had a moderator who introduced presenters,
encouraged questions, etc.

My general impression of the conference was positive. Of course, I speak
both German and English, so I probably got more out of the conference than
some of the other international guests, but the mix of cultures, and the mix
of practitioners and academicians lead to animated discussions, and
stimulating ideas. For those who are interested I recommend to take a look
at the website (available in both German and English) and the online
proceedings at http://www.gor.de

I believe both AIoR and GOR can profit from a joint conference. The
conference language would probably have to be English, but I know that
wouldn't be a problem for the majority of German GOR participants. AIoR and
GOR overlap in their focus, which means we can learn from and inspire each
other; we can define new problems (and maybe share ideas for solutions)
through new perspectives; we can profit from research being done half a
globe away and form international research teams. All it takes is
willingness to act.

I'd like to encourage reactions to my suggestion. I'm perfectly willing to
give more details (including names and emails of this year's organizing team
at GOR) about the conference, either on the list, or in private emails
(ulla at ukans.edu).

Is a joint conference with GOR desirable?

Is it do-able?

Yes and yes in my opinion. What do you think?

Thanks,
Ulla Bunz

Jeremy Hunsinger
far away from the office