From the we’re-all-in-the-wrong-line-of-work file comes a recently released piece of research from Syracuse University concluding that because e-mail lacks the visual cues of face-to-face communication, it is more likely to be misinterpreted.
Kristin Byron, an assistant professor in the Whitman School of Management, has written a paper slated to appear in the next edition Academy Management Review concluding, among other things, that there is evidence that employees often inaccurately perceive emotions in e-mails at work.
“The lack of cues and feedback in e-mail makes messages that might be unambiguously conveyed in face-to-face communication difficult to interpret when sent by e-mail,” said a press release announcing the findings.
“Miscommunication in emails can be caused by senders’ inability to accurately convey their intended meaning and by receivers’ inability to accurately perceive the sender’s intended meaning,” said Byron in the release.
Among the solutions Byron suggests are offering training on the use of e-mail and “when possible, favoring face-to-face communication until a new relationship becomes more established.”
Great, just what we need. Right after sexual harassment and diversity training, we can have e-mail training so we can avoid being sued over a bunch of misinterpreted smiley faces. Meanwhile, the new dork will keep popping his head into our cube for face-to-face communication until we can firmly establish that our relationship is one of mutual loathing and should be conducted solely by e-mail.
