[Air-L] Change of default reply setting on air-l

[Mark Warschauer]

Thank you for putting it this way.  I don't agree that the default reply 
option in and of itself powerfully sets a norm about communication 
expectations on a list, but the fact that you have put forward such an 
argument and a prediction that flows from it means that it can be 
empirically tested.

Let's see if the traffic to this list slows down over a certain period 
of time, and, if so, by how much.  I would contend that a certain 
slowing down is desirable (if, for example, there previously were 
messages sent in error to the entire list, and now there are not).  But 
if the reduction is traffic is dramatic, and the list becomes less 
useful to people because of that, then we'll find that out in due time.
Mark

Mark Warschauer
Professor of Education and Informatics
University of California, Irvine
Berkeley Place 2001 (for mail); Berkeley Place 3000C (for visitors)
Irvine, CA 92697-5500
tel: (949) 824-2526,  fax: (949) 824-2965
markw at uci.edu; http://www.gse.uci.edu/markw



Jennifer Stromer-Galley wrote:
> There have been some requests for research that might help indicate
> whether the change to the email list is beneficial/problematic for the
> list.
>
> The research that informs my concerns about the shift to the new
> default-to-individual reply focuses on norms. Norms are shaped not only
> by other people but by the technology that frames the interaction
> (Martey and Stromer-Galley, 2007; Stromer-Galley and Martey,
> forthcoming). 
>
> If the old norm of the AoIR list was that a replied-to message went to
> the entire list, then the expectation for the list was that interactions
> on the list were, by default, public. The norm then for communication
> through this list was that it was public communication.
>
> If the new norm of the list is that a replied-to message goes to the
> individual, then the norm for the list will shift to become the case
> that most interaction is private. 
>
> To put it another way, the structure of the technology establishes the
> norm for interaction. 
>
> Although I don't disagree that it takes but a moment to push the
> necessary buttons to make a replied-to message go to the list, there is
> more at play here than just pushing buttons. Individuals have to
> cognitively engage the question of whether the message should be public
> or private. The default setting suggests that the norm for interaction
> is that replied-to messages should be private; hence, it requires a new
> level of justification on the part of the sender to determine that the
> message is appropriate for public consumption.  
>
> The net result, I predict, is that there will be significantly less
> traffic on the AoIR list over the following months as people adapt to
> the new norm that's established by the technological shift. I personally
> would find that disappointing, as I learn a great deal from the public
> conversation, and would lose their insights as the conversation shifts
> to private channels.
>
> References:
> Martey R. M., & Stromer-Galley, J. (2007). The digital dollhouse:
> Context and social norms in 
> The Sims Online. Games & Culture, 2, 314-344. 
>
> Stromer-Galley, J., & Martey, R. M. (in press). Visual spaces, norm
> governed places: The influence of spatial context online. New Media &
> Society.
>
>
> Regards,
> ~Jenny
>
> Assistant Professor
> Department of Communication, SS 340
> University at Albany, SUNY
> Albany, NY 12222
> 518-442-4873
> jstromer at albany.edu
> http://www.albany.edu/~jstromer 
>
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