Title: Designing Relay: Towards Computer-Mediated Metacommunication

Date: Monday, June 12, 2023

Time:  9:00AM – 11:00AM EST

Location: Virtual – Microsoft Teams (Click here to join)

Committee

Dr. Bruce N. Walker (Advisor), School of Psychology & School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Rosa Arriaga, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Munmun De Choudhury, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Neha Kumar, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Hannah Miller Hillberg, Department of Computer Science, University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh

Abstract

Computer-mediated communication (CMC) systems have revolutionized how people communicate and maintain relationships. Advances in mobile computing technologies have transformed the modern smartphone into a communication hub, enabling people to instantly connect with each other via social networking sites – such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter – and mobile messaging platforms – such as iMessage, WeChat, and WhatsApp. These communication platforms rely on text, emojis and emoticons, and various forms of visual media to facilitate asynchronous communication between interlocutors. Given the widespread adoption of these platforms, technology users have employed creative strategies to enhance their ability to express themselves. Just as verbal communication is dependent upon nonverbal contextual cues – such as prosodic intonation and body language – to aid in the conveyance and interpretation of spoken messages in face-to-face communications, emojis and emoticons function as nonverbal contextual supplements that aid in the conveyance and interpretation of text-based messages in CMC. The augmentations that serve to enhance the interpretability of messages – in both speech and in text messages – are referred to as “metacommunication.” Yet, the subject of metacommunication in CMC systems remains relatively unexplored.

This thesis explores computer-mediated metacommunication through the deployment of Relay, a novel text-messaging application that prioritizes metacommunication. Relay utilizes Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing techniques to provide users with context-specific information about messages exchanged between communicating parties. First, I define the problem space and highlight the need for intentioned examinations of metacommunications in the field of CMC. Next, I examine the communication behaviors and patterns of intimate dyad pairs to establish a baseline for their level of metacommunicative expressiveness. Finally, I deploy Relay in these intimate dyad pairs to: 1) evaluate the efficacy, utility, and desirability of a text-messaging experience that prioritizes metacommunication; 2) measure the effects, if any, of Gender and Relationship on the outcome variables of efficacy, utility, and desirability; and 3) compare the performance of Relay against contemporary text-based communication platforms such as Apple’s iMessage.