Media Richness Theory

In the working paper, Veenen limited the main examples of his online dispute resolution tools mainly to tools that rely on text information (eg compared to video chat). He proves the rationality of this approach, and the text-based approach suggests that technology advances and works well on many different platforms (computers, tablets, smartphones, etc.). However, he immediately pointed out some limitations on the media identified by early CMC theorists such as Richard L. Daft and Robert H. Lengel.

Daft and Lengel have developed a theory about organizational communication called media rich theory. In essence, text - based online communication is said to be less abundant than other media at many important levels. For medical practitioners who wish to replace face-to-face mediation with online tools, the text-based approach seems to lack immediacy and subtle communication of face-to-face communication permission.

The media richness theory provides a framework for explaining the ability of a communication medium to reproduce the information transmitted therethrough without loss or distortion. For example, you can not reproduce visual social cues such as gestures on the phone. Compared to video conferencing, this is less versatile (as a communication medium). Video conferencing can convey gestures to some extent, but is more abundant than e-mail. Specifically, the theory of richness of media thinks that a richer media format is more suitable for tasks more ambiguous and more uncertain.

"The richness of information is defined by Daft and Lengel as" Ability to change understanding at certain time intervals. " Communication that overcomes different reference frames, clarifies the ambiguity problem and promotes understanding is considered richer. Understanding is not so rich

According to Daft and Lengel's theory, the richness of the media is (1) instant feedback capability of the media, (2) number of available threads and channels, (3) language diversity, and (4) It depends on the degree of intention to concentrate. As the number of channels increases, the immediacy and enthusiasm increases as the social presence of the media increases. "

1 Daft, R. & Lengel, R .; (1986) Organizational information requirements, media abundance, structural design Management Science 32 (5), 554-571

Understanding the theory of media richness can be helpful in exploring the impact of various types of communication media on messages. Media theory of richness derives mainly from the literature on computer mediated communication (CMC), and it is often related to business communication. In this context, the media richness theory is used to analyze the selection of communication media and to help reduce the ambiguity of communication by proper selection of communication media.

The theory of richness in the media points out that all communication media have different abilities in that users can communicate and change their understanding. The degree of this ability is called "richness" of the medium. MRT continuously arranges all communication media based on its ability to fully convey complex information. Media that effectively overcomes different reference frames and can clarify ambiguous issues is considered more abundant and media that requires more time to convey understanding is considered less abundant To be

Media richness theory, also called information richness theory or MRT, is a framework for explaining the capabilities of communication media to reproduce transmitted information. It was introduced in 1986 by Richard L. Daft and Robert H. Lengel as an extension of information processing theory. MRT is used to rank and assess the richness of specific communication media such as telephony, video conference, e-mail. For example, a phone can not play a visual social cue like a gesture, which makes it a less informative communication medium than a video conference that provides gesture and body language transmission. Based on contingency theory and information processing theory, MRT explains that richer personal communication media will generally convey ambiguous questions more effectively than slim, rich media.