iHub seminar

2023-10-24 15:30 - 17:00 E.19.03

What can we gain from action-centered approach to computer-mediated communication – a case of ethnomethodology and video-mediated interaction

The experience of video-mediated interaction, such as Zoom or Team calls, is often described as unnatural or poor compared to face-to-face. This is often explained by the essential differences between the two modes. Instead of the technology and its features, in this presentation, I focus on people’s actions and interactions around the technology. I examine how interactants recognize technology-generated ruptures of shared understanding, how they repair these ruptures, and how technical mediation becomes consequential for these practices in video-mediated interaction. I suggest that the broader field of computer-mediated communication would benefit from the action-centered and context-sensitive mode of analysis offered by ethnomethodological conversation analysis in two ways: foregrounding creative and diverse ways of using communication technologies and offering a more robust theoretical understanding of the relationship between human conduct and communication media.

Bio: Sakari Ilomäki is a postdoctoral researcher at Tampere University, Faculty of Social Sciences