IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/inm/orisre/v9y1998i3p256-274.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Testing Media Richness Theory in the New Media: The Effects of Cues, Feedback, and Task Equivocality

Author

Listed:
  • Alan R. Dennis

    (Department of Management, Terry College of Business, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602)

  • Susan T. Kinney

    (Williams Power Company, Waynesboro, Georgia 30830)

Abstract

Media richness theory argues that performance improves when team members use “richer” media for equivocal tasks. This experiment studied the effects of media richness on decision making in two-person teams using “new media” (i.e., computer-mediated and video communication). Media richness was varied based on multiplicity of cues and immediacy of feedback. Subjects perceived differences in richness due to both cues and feedback, but matching richness to task equivocality did not improve decision quality, decision time, consensus change, or communication satisfaction. Use of media providing fewer cues (i.e., computer mediated communication) led to slower decisions and more so for the less equivocal task. In short, the results found no support for the central proposition of media richness theory; matching media richness to task equivocality did not improve performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Alan R. Dennis & Susan T. Kinney, 1998. "Testing Media Richness Theory in the New Media: The Effects of Cues, Feedback, and Task Equivocality," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 9(3), pages 256-274, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orisre:v:9:y:1998:i:3:p:256-274
    DOI: 10.1287/isre.9.3.256
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/isre.9.3.256
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1287/isre.9.3.256?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. M. Lynne Markus, 1994. "Electronic Mail as the Medium of Managerial Choice," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 5(4), pages 502-527, November.
    2. Richard L. Daft & Robert H. Lengel, 1986. "Organizational Information Requirements, Media Richness and Structural Design," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 32(5), pages 554-571, May.
    3. Ronald E. Rice, 1992. "Task Analyzability, Use of New Media, and Effectiveness: A Multi-Site Exploration of Media Richness," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 3(4), pages 475-500, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Meissner, Jens O., 2005. "Relationship Quality in the Context of Computer-Mediated Communication - A social constructionist approach," Working papers 2005/15, Faculty of Business and Economics - University of Basel.
    2. Jonathan W. Palmer, 2002. "Web Site Usability, Design, and Performance Metrics," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 13(2), pages 151-167, June.
    3. Koo, Chulmo & Wati, Yulia & Jung, Jason J., 2011. "Examination of how social aspects moderate the relationship between task characteristics and usage of social communication technologies (SCTs) in organizations," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 445-459.
    4. Brian E. Mennecke & Joseph S. Valacich & Bradley C. Wheeler, 2000. "The Effects of Media and Task on User Performance: A Test of the Task-Media Fit Hypothesis," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 9(6), pages 507-529, November.
    5. Joel Harmon, 1998. "Electronic Meetings and Intense Group Conflict: Effects of a Policy-Modeling Performance Support System and an Audio Communication Support System on Satisfaction and Agreement," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 7(2), pages 131-153, March.
    6. Kurtzberg, Terri R. & Naquin, Charles E. & Belkin, Liuba Y., 2005. "Electronic performance appraisals: The effects of e-mail communication on peer ratings in actual and simulated environments," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 98(2), pages 216-226, November.
    7. Willem Standaert & Steve Muylle & Amit Basu, 2016. "An empirical study of the effectiveness of telepresence as a business meeting mode," Information Technology and Management, Springer, vol. 17(4), pages 323-339, December.
    8. Linda Klebe Treviño & Jane Webster & Eric W. Stein, 2000. "Making Connections: Complementary Influences on Communication Media Choices, Attitudes, and Use," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 11(2), pages 163-182, April.
    9. Ofir Turel & Catherine E. Connelly, 2012. "Team Spirit: The Influence of Psychological Collectivism on the Usage of E-Collaboration Tools," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 21(5), pages 703-725, September.
    10. repec:dau:papers:123456789/3232 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Gary E Bolton & Claudia Loebbecke & Axel Ockenfels, 2007. "How Social Reputation Networks Interact with Competition in Anonymous Online Trading: An Experimental Study," Working Paper Series in Economics 32, University of Cologne, Department of Economics.
    12. Sumita Raghuram & Philipp Tuertscher & Raghu Garud, 2010. "Research Note ---Mapping the Field of Virtual Work: A Cocitation Analysis," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 21(4), pages 983-999, December.
    13. Kelly Burke & Laku Chidambaram & Kregg Aytes, 2002. "Do Some Things Change Faster than Others? The Dynamics of Behavioral Change in Computer-Supported Groups," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 293-309, July.
    14. Martha L. Maznevski & Katherine M. Chudoba, 2000. "Bridging Space Over Time: Global Virtual Team Dynamics and Effectiveness," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 11(5), pages 473-492, October.
    15. Li, Shenxue & Easterby-Smith, Mark & Lyles, Marjorie A. & Clark, Timothy, 2016. "Tapping the power of local knowledge: A local-global interactive perspective," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(4), pages 641-653.
    16. Sidhu, Jatinder S. & Volberda, Henk W., 2011. "Coordination of globally distributed teams: A co-evolution perspective on offshoring," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 278-290, June.
    17. Sosa, Manuel E., 2003. "Factors that influence technical communication in distributed product development : an empirical study in the telecommunications industry," Working papers WP 4123-00., Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Sloan School of Management.
    18. Hoegl, Martin & Proserpio, Luigi, 2004. "Team member proximity and teamwork in innovative projects," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(8), pages 1153-1165, October.
    19. Jeanine Warisse Turner & N. Lamar Reinsch, 2010. "Successful and unsuccessful multicommunication episodes: Engaging in dialogue or juggling messages?," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 12(3), pages 277-285, July.
    20. Eun-Ho Kim & Dongho Yoo & Sun-Jae Doh, 2021. "Self-construal on brand fan pages: the mediating effect of para-social interaction and consumer engagement on brand loyalty," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(3), pages 254-271, May.
    21. Michele Griessmair & Sabine T. Koeszegi, 2009. "Exploring the Cognitive-Emotional Fugue in Electronic Negotiations," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 213-234, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:inm:orisre:v:9:y:1998:i:3:p:256-274. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Asher (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/inforea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.