Thinking Collaboratively by D. Randy Garrison

Author:D. Randy Garrison [D. Randy Garrison]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781317581109
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Social Presence

The importance of social presence is rooted in the premise that a community of inquiry reflects a collaborative, cohort-based approach to thinking and learning (a social constructivist paradigm). The term “social presence” was originally introduced by Short et al. (1976) who focused on telecommunications and a sense of intimacy resulting from a loss of physical cues such as eye contact and smiling. Their focus was largely on the quality of the medium that would allow individuals to projects themselves socially and emotionally. In the 1990s other researchers began to shift the focus from the property of the medium or technology to that of the people and their communications (largely socio-emotional) (Cui et al. 2013). Social presence continued to evolve with a shift from a focus on the affective to include interactive and cohesive responses in a community of inquiry (Rourke et al. 2001). This definition extended social presence to include communication that contributed to a sense of community and to identification with the academic purpose. The assumption was that mediated communication could develop a functional learning community through social presence.

The original CoI definition of social presence did not explicitly reflect the priority of identifying with and establishing a purposeful community of inquiry. The initial emphasis was on the socio-emotional and interpersonal relationships. While consideration of open communication and group cohesion were essential components of social presence, the overriding influence of the academic purpose of the group was not adequately addressed. Nearly a decade after the original definition of social presence was published this oversight was addressed with a shift in focus from the person to the purpose of the communication (Garrison 2009). The social presence construct was refined through a closer look at identity issues within an academic environment and the progressive dynamics of its sub-elements shifted in chronological emphasis (open communication, cohesion and interpersonal relationships). The definition of social presence was therefore revised as: “the ability of participants to identify with the community (e.g., course of study), communicate purposefully in a trusting environment, and develop inter-personal relationships by way of projecting their individual personalities” (Garrison 2009, p. 352).

This modest but important revision shifted the initial emphasis from interpersonal relationships to identification with and processes in supporting the creation of a cohesive community of inquiry. This shift was precipitated and supported by research on group identity. Rogers and Lea (2005) argued that it is shared social identity and not personal identity that is essential for a group to coalesce. They suggested that interpersonal bonds and personal goals, in fact, could undermine cohesive group behavior. That is, strong personal relationships could well restrict the open communication that is essential to build cohesion. The issue of participants’ implicit collusion to act uncritically and avoid conflict was raised by Kennedy and Kennedy (2010) in the context of communities of inquiry and they noted its risk of undermining group cohesion. They label this non-critical thinking as groupthink and state that “groupthink represents the negative side of group safety, and is a chief inhibitor of inquiry” (Kennedy and Kennedy 2010, p.

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