Cognition, Cues, Nudges and Affordances in Mobile

CommunicationTyler Gayheart

Affordance Theory

● Gibson (1977) presented the Theory of Affordances for the explanation of the affordances the environment and what it offers to the animal, what it provides or furnishes, either for good or ill

● Grounded in the natural sciences● “An affordance of support for species of an animal,

however, they have to be measured relative to the animal. They are unique for that animal. They are not just abstract physical properties. An affordance cannot be measured as we measure in physics.”

Don Norman on “affordances”.

MAIN Model

Sundar takes a heuristic approach to understanding the cues

and affordances in digital media technologies. The MAIN model aids researchers, agencies and users to better design and position devices, websites and experiences to meet the affordances of digital media users.

Mobile Communication

● Campbell, Ling and Bayer (2014) ground the definition of mobile communication in terms of what the hardware, the software and the communication channels afford, or make possible as opposed to the physical constraints or wireless nature of telephones.

● Bridge between sociological and psychological● Cues, habits are changing society

○ Macro and micro

Structuration Theory

● Structuration theory (Giddens, 1984) provide a framework for uncovering how individual behavior interacts with the rules of a social system.

● Contributes towards habitual action, but does not explain the how and why’s regarding technology - or even mobile technology

● Individual behavior affects the development of normative rules and vice versa

● Affordance Theory can help

Modalities, Media Cognition & Habits● Specific modes of mobile communication is performed in

a automatic or habitual manner according to research conducted by Bayer, Cin, Campbell and Panek (2015).

● Consciousness is not binary and lives on a continuum● Media cognition falls in the educational and learning

domains, however, the cognitive implications for mobile communication are vast

● Symbol systems theory, as posited by Salomon as a learning theory is intended to explain the effects of media on learning and cognition.

Cues, Markers & Heuristics

● Heuristics, or an approach to problem solving or method sufficient for an immediate goal, is a basic tenant of the MAIN Model

● Peripheral route, as described by the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) or a more central, cognitive route (Chaiken, 1980)

● Heuristic processing model (HSM) relies on mental shortcuts or judgemental rules that are already stored in memory.

The Nudge Theory

● Thaler and Sunstein (2009) coined the term “choice architecture”

● Posit that policy makers may nudge citizens to make critical choices through subtle cues to encourage better decisions

● Understanding the importance of cues, heuristics and automaticity in their strategies to communicate effectively in a mobile environment.

Future Inquiry

● Open for scholarly inquiry into mobile communication● Convergence of these ideas into a singular approach● Evaluate human goals, cognition and perceived

affordances should not be limited to quantitatively valenced methodologies

● Blending of affordance approaches (ecological and cognitive) for better design

● Bridge beyond sociological and psychological and human computer interaction (HCI)

Dual Process Affordance Model

Discussion & Conclusion

● HCI is robust for understanding affordance theory ● New model for technological affordances - that combine

ecological and cognitive approaches ● Too many models● Not technological determinism, but rather focused on

SCOT● Methodological approaches: mixed methods, focused on

lab-based observation● New breed of measurements and outcomes

Discussion & Conclusion (cont.)

● Do the constructs and models that are being developed and proposed accurately capture the complexities of human behavior in the complex technological media landscape?

● Future research should evaluate the dual process models like HSM and ELM, as well as the MAIN Model, theory of affordance, heuristic cues, nudge theory and cognitive processing within the lens of mobile communication activity to identify a new breed of measures for how we process information in these environments.

Questions?Thank you!

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