IMPACT OF VIDEO-MEDIATED COMMUNICATION ON SIMULATED SERVICE ENCOUNTERS

The results are reported of three studies of collaborative problem-sol ving in a simulated travel agency where communication between travel a gent and customers is supported by a videolink and shared multimedia t ools. The video-mediated contexts (VMCs) were compared with face-to-fa ce and audio-only interactions in terms of the success of the task out come, the process of communication and decision making and user satisf action. VMC did not deliver the same benefits as face-to-face interact ions. The possible reasons for this are explored as well as the implic ations of the data for evaluation techniques.