RESEARCHING ELECTRONIC NETWORKS

Composition studies, as a field, has always depended on theoretical co nstructs and empirical methods from other disciplines. This article lo oks at interdisciplinary work in the area of composition and computer- mediated communication (CMC). The work on writing and electronic netwo rks has drawn from early experimental studies of CMC in social psychol ogy, the premises of which are at odds with current thinking in both c omposition studies and social psychology. In recent years, social psyc hological research on CMC has witnessed changes similar to those in co mposition: a rethinking of positivistic frameworks and a move to empha size social constructs. This article reviews the work of four groups c onducting social psychological research on CMC. It traces the movement away from theoretical frameworks based in positivism toward those gro unded in social constructionism. It concludes by advocating a dialogic relationship between research in computers and composition studies an d social psychology.