Page 183 - Culture Technology Communication

166 Concetta Stewart, et al.

Herring’s (1996b) research on Internet listserv discussions sup-
ports these differences in communication patterns and has shown
that men are more critical, flaming and adversarial. Men also value
freedom from censorship along with candor and debate and will vio-
late negative politeness (i.e., imposition) with the longest posts,
copying most text and the longest signature files. Women value har-
mony and will avoid conflict, controlling action to minimize damage,
which is a positive politeness pattern.
Typically it is the most dominant and powerful group whose val-
ues take on a normative status. Herring (1996a) contends that the
issue then is to understand whose values inform the rules of behav-
ior on the Internet. These differences that reproduce patterns of
dominance must be known and understood in order that we may ad-
dress them to achieve a more equitable and hospitable environment
in cyberspace.

Research Questions

The focus of this research is related to how differences between the
communication styles of the different cultures (high- and low-context,
male and female) exhibit themselves in this mediated communication
environment. The primary research questions, then, are:

RQ1: Is there a predominant cultural style?
What was the message frequency by individual and by group
based on culture? Based on gender?
What was the message length by individual and by group
based on culture? Based on gender?

What was the adoption rate by individual and by group
based on culture? Based on gender?
RQ2: Are there differences in communication styles of men
and women?
Is there evidence of collective versus individual concerns?
Is there evidence of self- versus other-face orientation

RQ3: Are there differences in communication styles of
white Americans and the other cultures?
Is there evidence of collective versus individual concerns?

Is there evidence of self- versus other-face orientation?