Avatar e-mail versus traditional e-mail: Perceptual difference and media selection difference

作者：Lee Younghwa^*; Kozar Kenneth A; Larsen Kai R

来源：Decision Support Systems, 2009, 46(2): 451-467.

DOI：10.1016/j.dss.2007.11.008

• E-mail use
• Rational theories of media choice

The study investigates how knowledge workers perceive avatar e-mail differently from traditional c-mail, and flow they select traditional versus avatar e-mail when different levels of task equivocality and different types of communication direction arc present. Three field studies were conducted with knowledge workers who have used avatar and traditional e-mail. This Study demonstrates that overall perception toward avatar c-mail is significantly different from traditional c-mail with respect to media richness and social presence characteristics. In addition, this study found individuals used different e-mail selection approaches when conducting tasks with different equivocality (high versus low equivocal tasks) and tasks for different communication direction (lateral versus upward). Avatar e-mail users also sent lengthier messages than traditional e-mail users when conducting it highly equivocal task.

• 出版日期2009-1