Carolyn A. Lin Professor, Visiting Scholar Chinese University of Hong Kong University of Connecticut

Communication Technology

Theory and Research:

Converging the Past, Present and Future

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1. Mass Communication Research

Who is the target audience for the content?

What are the potential effects of such content use?

Where has all the audience gone?

2. Communication Technology Research

Where has all the audience come from?

What is the technology for and who is the target user?

What is the degree of technology fluidity (Lin)?

How and why does the audience use the technology?

What content can the audience access via the technology?

What are the potential effects of such content use?

I. Research Agenda

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1. Ecological Perspective

Different technology/content choices compete for a similar

and fixed allocation of audience/user time and attention

2. Functional Perspective

A new technology/content choice that is seen as a desirable

alternative can replace its functionally similar counterpart

3. Compensatory Perspective (Lin)

Technology/content choices are made to compensate for

each modality’s content, delivery channel and cost factors

Technology-Choice Behavior

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1. Transmissive Communication

Ubiquitous transmission of information, cultures and values

2. Social Communication

Reach out and Tweet someone – I See Your Face

3. Mobile Communication

Personalize the message with primacy and immediacy

4. Inter-Media Communication (Lin)

Capitalize on the synergy of the communication attributes

between offline and online media

Communication Functions

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II. Technology Adoption Research Model

1. Institutional Level Government: Policy and regulation planning and outcomes Technology Industry: Innovations and market competition Social Institutions: Social change and engineering 2. Societal Level The Press: A 24-7 platform for agenda setting & framing Mediated Channels: A 24-7 vehicle for priming and chatter Mobile Modality: A fluid personal communication system 3. User Level Individuals: Technology efficacy and self-empowerment Reference groups: Social support & relationship maintenance Communities: Social networks and social capital

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Communication Technology Adoption Research Model (Lin)

Adoption Factors

System Factors

Audience Factors

Tech Factors

Social Factors

Use Factors

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1. System Factors

A dynamic system that receives continuous input and

output of energy/matter to achieve a functional flow

a. Regulation/Policy: Guides technology innovations, shapes

market competition and provides consumer protection

b. Technological Culture: Shapes the beliefs, ideas and

market acceptance related to technology innovations

c. Technology Trends: Deters, accelerates or discontinues

technology innovations and market competition

d. Market Competition: Shapes and reshapes technology

innovations, trends, diffusion and adoption

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2. Audience Factors

Individual attributes can influence adoption and uses

Innovative Attributes: venturesome, novelty-seeking

and less risk-averse personality traits

Innovativeness Need: the need to self-actualize the

innovative tendency or drive

Self Efficacy: perceived personal ability and confidence

Cognitive Orientation: belief, attitude, perceived personal

control and behavioral intention associated with adoption

(e.g., Theory of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior)

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3. Social Factors

The social environment can help shape the normative

influence on diffusion and adoption

Opinion Leaders: Have a strong influence on innovations,

diffusion and adoption in all kinds of social settings

Critical Mass: The early-majority adopter group is crucial

in energizing wide-spread adoption

Media System: The press, entertainment media and

popular culture can help cultivate a technology culture

and mainstream it into our social vocabulary

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4. Technology Factors

Objective and subjective criteria used in evaluating the

technical and social characteristics of a technology

Innovation Attributes: Technology trialability, complexity,

relative advantage, compatibility and observability

Social Presence: Technology’s capability to create a user

awareness of social-interaction realism

Media Richness: Technology’s capability to convey verbal

and nonverbal cues as well as provide instant feedback

Technology Fluidity: Technology’s capability to provide

a seamless interface between multifunctional and

transmutable modalities to offer a fluid interactive

and social communication experience

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6. Use Factor

Actual use experience or social learning can motivate adoption, adoption discontinuance or non-adoption

Communication Flow: Satisfaction with perceived sense of

control, attentiveness, curiosity and interestedness via

technology-driven social interactions

Expectancy Value: : Satisfaction with perceived degree of

expected value outpacing the cost

Uses and Gratifications: Satisfaction with meeting

information (work), stimulation (play), edutainment

(learning) and social (networking) needs

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5. Adoption Factor

Adoption intention and action are influenced by the system,

audience, social, technology and use factors

Non-adoption: Indicate missing or negative links between the above-mentioned factors Discontinuance: Point to negative interactions involving the above-mentioned factors Likely Adoption: Reflect a delayed adoption action due to extrinsic and/or intrinsic barriers Adoption: Adapt the technology to meet the divergent needs of individual and institutional users Reinvention: Invent new ways to innovate the technology

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III. Research Agenda Convergence

1. New Wine in Old Bottle

Old: User needs, wants, motivations and behaviors are stable

New: User-centered research in relation to the social and

technical characters of technology, including technology

usefulness, usability and fluidity

2. Interdisciplinary research

Set shared research objectives between different disciplines

Create intellectual synergy via different research traditions

3. International research collaboration

Exchange unique cultural and cross-cultural perspectives

Apply theories and methodologies with cultural considerations

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Thank You & 謝謝