Open AccessCultural Cues in Students' Computer‐Mediated Communication: Influences on E‐mail Style, Perception of the Sender, and Willingness to Help
Author(s) -
Hansen Miriam,
Fabriz Sabine,
Stehle Sebastian
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of computer‐mediated communication
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.15
H-Index - 119
ISSN - 1083-6101
DOI - 10.1111/jcc4.12110
Subject(s) - communication source , style (visual arts) , psychology , ethnic group , perception , social psychology , personality , german , willingness to communicate , linguistics , computer science , sociology , telecommunications , archaeology , neuroscience , history , philosophy , anthropology
Computer‐mediated communication among university students with different cultural backgrounds has become widespread. In this study, we examine how undergraduates ( N = 130) react to cultural cues when responding to an e‐mail request for cooperation sent by a peer. Participants rated the sender's personality and stated their willingness to help. In the inquiry, 2 types of cultural cues were varied, resulting in a 2 × 2 factorial design: ethnicity (German vs. Chinese name) and communication style (Western vs. Asian). Results showed that participants aligned their responses to the communication style; however, the ethnicity cue influenced the wording of their response, their perception of the sender's personality and their willingness to help. Results are discussed regarding communication accommodation and social judgment theories.