Sean McCabe
Lost In Transmission
Sales of videoconferencing systems were up 24% in 2008’s first half, reports industry analyst Wainhouse Research. But a new study suggests a meeting’s message can get lost in the medium. Researchers at Boston University and Penn State’s Great Valley campus surveyed 282 doctors who attended grand rounds (presentations on complex cases) in person or by video. The video attendees were twice as likely to base their evaluation of the meetings on the speaker rather than the content. They were also more likely to say the speaker was hard to follow. Why? Co-author Stephanie Watts of Boston University says our brains gather data about people before turning to what they say. In person, we do this quickly. But speakers are harder to “read” on screen, so we focus more on them. New “telepresence” video systems, which create the illusion of sitting in the same room—even allowing eye contact between participants—may help solve the problem. The catch: Some cost up to $300,000.
