12 EXTRA BLOG

During this semester in COMM 245, we have discussed numerous theories, some that I predict will hold in the future and some that I predict will change in the future. The Hyperpersonal Theory states that in CMC there is a reduction in breadth (rate a CMC partner on fewer characteristics) and an increase in intensity (more intense/exaggerated ratings of a CMC partner). In the future, people will talk more and more through CMC and become better at judging the person on the other computer. Therefore, people will not over-attribute others or give really intense ratings of a CMC partner; in the future, people will know better. Using the reasoning that people will talk more and more online and learn how to better judge a CMC partner, the Social Information Processing Theory will change as well. The Media Richness Theory states that communication media differ in the richness of the information processed, and efficiency equals the optimal match between equivocality of a communication task and the richness of the medium. I predict that the Media Richness Theory will hold true in the future and expand to new communication technologies. I predict that some theories we discussed in class will completely hold in the future. For example, the Social Distance Theory (which states that lying is uncomfortable and people use the most socially distant, or leanest, media to lie in, will remain unchanged in the future. This theory deals with human nature, and no matter what technologies are invented or what other theories are invented; this quality of people will remain unchanged and cause this theory to remain unchanged. In the future, gender signals during CMC will remain unchanged as well. Once again, these are human traits that will never change in the future. I also believe that the Caplan Model will become even more intense in the future. With new and more addicting technologies being created, people who have social problems in FtF communication will become more and more addicted to CMC with the creation of more addicting technologies.

There are a few new technologies that will need to be addressed in the future. The first one being Internet on your phone. Having Internet on your phone is like having Internet everywhere you go, and Internet on your phone is wireless. Another technology that goes along with this is instant message on your phone, such as Blackberry Messaging. I also think video-conferencing is another form of technology that needs to be addressed. For example, one of my lectures at Cornell had two professors. One of the professors lectured in the classroom, while the other one lectured through videoconferencing. He lived in New York City. Essentially, a professor who was not on the Cornell campus, but hundreds of miles away, was lecturing to the class.

COMM 245 did a wonderful job of teaching us how we communicate using different CMC technologies compared to FtF communication. The class allowed us to participate in what we were learning about by blogging online for our weekly assignments. I would have liked to learn more about the start of Internet. I also would have liked to know how the Internet has affected the economy; such as which jobs were lost because of the Internet and which jobs were gained. In conclusion, COMM 245 was a very interesting and informative class!