Thomas Erickson (2004). Designing Online Collaborative Environments: Social Visualizations as Shared Resources (.pdf). Proceedings of the 9th International Working Conference on the Language-Action Perspective on Communication Modelling (LAP 2004), New Brunswick, NJ, 2-3 June 2004.
Abstract. How might online collaborative environments be designed so as to better support coherent interaction amongst their users? Drawing from a case study of an example of coherence in an online system, I argue that one way to improve online environments is to provide visualizations that depict the presence and activities of their users. I discuss our approach to creating such visualizations using the concept of the social proxy—a minimalist representation of people and their activities in a particular context—and describe systems we have designed and deployed. I conclude with a series of concept pieces that illustrate the breath of the concept.
Came across this paper a few weeks ago and loved it. The case presented by Tom (a game that involved collectively generating limericks) is an example of long-running, productive conversation. Tom attributes the success of the conversation to the well-defined nature and visibility of it conventions (conversation rules).
Next to the case there are examples of social proxies (visualisation that make collective activity visible); those are good for thinking as well.
There is another paper with more details on the “limerick game” case – Erickson, T. (1999) Rhyme and punishment: The creation and enforcement of conventions in an on-line participatory limerick genre. Just a quote from there:
One of the intriguing features of this conversation is that even though it has a very clear and simple set of conventions, participants have to do quite a lot of ‘work’ to support those conventions. Even the basic set of conventions that make up the raison d’être of the limerick topic need some enforcement. And, even more so, some participants need to be shown how to follow the conventions.
Meta-blogging note: I was in a middle of writing the post that is coming after this one and then realised that I had to write about the paper first :)
Tags: blog conversationsArchived version of this entry is available at http://blog.mathemagenic.com/2004/09/10.html#a1342; comments are here.
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