Hello all, Here is a call for papers for ICA pre-conference on mobile communication. It will be in May in San Francisco. We are focusing on (but are not limited to) issues surrounding social cohesion and mobile commuication.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Rich L.
Call for papers: Mobile Communication: Bringing Us Together or Tearing Us Apart?
International Communications Association Pre-conference Workshop #4
There has been much attention paid to the state of social cohesion during the
past decade. Robert Putnam has helped us to focus on social capital and its
status. Analysis in Europe and in Asia has looked into the interaction between
ICTs (usually the Internet) and the state of socialization, and now McPherson
has delivered an analysis on social isolation in the US. While it is possible
to comment on the studies, the general message seems to be that we are growing
apart rather than closer together.
Or are we?
It is interesting to note that several studies focusing on mobile communication
point at a different phenomena. Taking a clue from Licoppe's "connected
presence" and Katz & Aakhus' perpetual contact, there is the sense that the
threshold for interaction in the group - or the clique or the gang or the
family - has never been lower. Among others, recent studies by Ishii and by
Miyata in Japan, Lee in Korea, Reid and Reid in the UK, Banjo et al in the US
and Ling et al in the broader European scene indicate that the groups who use
mobile communication may indeed be more cohesive.
So what is it? Is it more, or less cohesion? Is the general trend towards
individualization while the peer group is becoming more tightly intertwined?
This is the theme that we wish to examine. While a portion of the program h as
been arranged in advance, we are also seeking proposals from both qualitative
and quantitative research projects that examine this question. Proposal
abstracts are due by January 29, 2007 to [EMAIL PROTECTED], and the final
program will be assembled by February 23, 2007. Final papers are due by May 1.
The program will accommodate up to 10 panel sessions, with discussants,
depending upon the number and quality of proposals submitted.
The pre-conference is a joint effort by the University of Michigan Department
of Communication Studies, Temple University, Microsoft Research and Telenor
Research. It will be held at the San Francisco Hilton, the conference hotel,
starting with a plenary session on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 23. There
will be panels on Wednesday afternoon, followed by a reception. And there will
be parallel sessions on Thursday, May 24, before and after a luncheon.
Cost: ICA Members: $40.00 USD
ICA Student members: $20.00 USD
Non-member price: $75.00
(Includes refreshments, lunch and reception)
Organized by
Prof. Michael Traugott, University of Michigan [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Prof. Concetta M. Stewart, Temple University [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dr. Jonathan Donner, Microsoft [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dr. Rich Ling, Telenor Research [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sponsored by
The University of Michigan Department of Communication Studies and the Pohs
Endowment
Microsoft Research
The Communication and Technology (CAT) division
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