メールはなぜ「話しやすい」のか? : CMC(Computer-Mediated Communication)における自己呈示効力感の上昇

抄録

The purpose of this study was to verify that people feel more at ease using Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) compared to other media because of higher self-presentation efficacy. The reason for this may be the lack of nonverbal cues in CMC: it can help people present themselves in a preferred way. To test this hypothesis, I conducted two experiments. The experimental hypothesis of Study 1 was as follows: when people strongly want to make a good impression on others, they feel it is easier to communicate without nonverbal cues than with them. Conversely, when people are unconcerned about the impression they make on others, the amount of nonverbal cues does not influence the level of ease that people feel. The results partially supported the hypothesis. In Study 2, I scrutinized the process of the phenomenon observed in Study 1. The model was: the lack of nonverbal cues in CMC raises self-presentation efficacy, therefore, people feel more at ease during CMC. The result of path analysis significantly supported this assumption.