Effects of long-term use of video-communication technologies on the conversational process

This paper examines the conversational process in video-mediated groups as compared to face-to-face groups. In a longitudinal between-groups design, 22 three-person groups were tested in four one-hour test sessions at two-week intervals. In each session, groups had to select and argue the correct answer out of three alternatives from a total of ten questions. The questions were selected from the archives of an annual Dutch television show called The Science Quiz. Results showed that, compared to face-to-face groups, video-mediated groups took more time for turns, required fewer turns to complete the task, interrupted each other less, and were less satisfied. At the end of the experiment, initial differences between groups on all these measures, except for satisfaction, had disappeared, suggesting an adaptation effect. The results are discussed in terms of implications for the design of video-communication technologies and possibilities for future researc