Extensions to media richness theory: a test of the task-media fit hypothesis

The richness of the communication environment and the type of task formed by dyads was contrasted in a laboratory experiment. Dyads communicated using face-to-face, videophone, telephone, and synchronous computer-mediated communication. One task was an intellective task while the other was a value-laden cognitive conflict task. For the intellective task, subjects were given different information (i.e. one subject received a directory from the Yellow Pages and the other a city map) and asked to locate the closest doctor´s office listed in the Yellow Pages directory to a location marked on the map. For the value-laden task, subjects were added to allocate limited funds to one or more of six controversial social causes. The results of this study help to provide theoretical extensions to normative views of media richness theory by discussing how variations in task processes may act to mediate both perceptions and performance.<>