Interpreting Mediated Messages – The Age of Technology

Factors of Mediated Messages:

• Instant messaging, emails, telephone etc.
• Internet friends w/o face-to-face
• Lost facial expressions, body language, tones
  • Lack of social/situational cues  
• Assumptions regarding emotions 
  • Emoticons, “emotion” words/phrases

Reasons For Misinterpretation:

• • Written words – not always get message across
    • Voice inflection/tone
    • Ex. Sarcasm 
  • Electronics cannot reproduce human faces 
    • Faces act as nonverbal cues 
  • Culture – individualistic vs. collectivist 
    • US vs. Asian countries 
  • Slang – older generations struggle 
    • Causes confusion
  • Etiquette – spelling/grammar errors
    • Depends on situation

Ways to Prevent Misinterpretation:

•  Familiar with habits 
  • Written text, response speed, implied tone
•  Acknowledge that you may not know everything
  • Language violations → culture?
•  Accurately explain behavior 
  • 1. Categorization – identify what is wrong
    • Errors
  • 2. Characterization – automatic assumptions about sender 
    • Not always entirely accurate
  • 3. Correction – correct yourself
    • Attribute info to situation
•  Maintain conscientiousness 
  • Global aspect of personality—use it!

That’s all for now! It’s important to take all of these factors into consideration when attempting to communicate a message via digital means! 🙂

~ Devin