Technological Systems in Interaction Convenience

This concept of accessibility was also present in the interactions that occurred via the use of technological systems. From the interviews it was clear that all interviewees used technological systems as one of their forms of interaction and communication with others with these being mentioned both in the survey data in Section 4.2’s Figure 4.18 and Figure 4.30, as well as throughout Section 4.4.1. However, often there was a barrier to its use, such as identified in Section 4.4.1 – Technical Ability and Accessibility sub-themes. For example, when interacting with their parents who were often not tech-savvy and as such needed assistance to be able to use particular technological interaction methods for interaction, such as Skype which was a specifically mentioned example. Skype is popular because it allows phone and video calls to be made free of charge and thus is much cheaper that traditional phone calls. The unfamiliarity in using technological systems to communicate was a barrier which required extra effort to bypass. However this barrier did not appear to exist in terms of interacting with other students in the FSP group or other people that they knew, as it could be expected that technological systems usage is commonplace amongst the relevant age group.

The participant group consisted of people from a range of different ages however 42 of the participants fell within the age range of 17 – 24, as shown in Figure 4.1. The age range is representative of those who would be tech-savvy and are likely users of social

Page | 157 technologies. Figure 4.6 and Figure 4.7 support this level of technological based awareness and experience with the wide range of digital social networks used and the self-reported computing experience. When examining the participant group in a broader context they could be considered as being representative of international students who are studying at university in Australia. Hence it is possible to attribute the behaviours of this group to the broader international student community.

By examining the results it can be seen that once the research participants were studying at the University they had relatively easy and consistent access to computers and the Internet. This access was unlikely to be a major barrier to the participant using technological systems and interacting via such means. In essence, the student participants had the tools at their disposal so the main question is how those tools were used.

Having access to computing systems is an essential part of the approach to education worldwide (Tamim et al, 2011). Universities work to ensure that students have sufficient access to these systems as classes require technological systems that are capable of supporting their study. It is the environment that provides access to these tools. Computing skills have also become essential for students to have and so this requirement will help to drive skills to suitable levels. Therefore past indicators of socioeconomic status, age and gender which are commonly associated with ICT usage (Volman, et al, 2004; Sutton, 1991) are less reliable.

In terms of convenience in interactions, technological systems play a role. Technologies like Skype can be used to talk with friends and family over distance while programs like Facebook allow the relationships to be easily formalized and tracked than traditionally approached. It was a clear theme for this research that Facebook was a useful program for keeping up-to-date with other people, as it allows relationships to be maintained with minimal effort. In addition Skype was commonly used for more personalized interactions with those of stronger social ties. While Skype makes the interaction convenient, there is still a time factor involved as it is usually only used to interact with one other person at a time, definitely not a convenient mode in terms of time however the strong relationship that exists and the desire for a more personalized interaction makes Skype desirable. Facebook on the other hand is cost free and can be used quickly to keep up-to-date with a large number of people in which direct contact is not needed or desired. It should be noted that a common theme throughout the interviews was that while Facebook is convenient to use for interaction with others on a general level, it has actually become a time consuming program in itself. This is due to the need or desire for some of the interviewees to feel connected to others and Facebook is simply the most convenient mode for doing that.

Page | 158 The theory on technology and its ability to connect people by overcoming barriers is well documented (Rheingold, 2003; Constant, Kiesler & Sproull, 1996; LaRose et al, 2001; Haythornthwaite, 2002; McKenna & Bargh, 2000) and the outcomes from this research support the body of work already completed. However, the idea that Facebook, as a social technology, can also be inconvenient is somewhat contradictory in that the time/cost saving achieved by being able to stay connected to others also creates a situation where time can be wasted as users are known to become addicted to the technological systems (if to a much less degree that traditional addiction would be associated). It is possible the benefits identified in the literature are still present but only up to a point in which the technological system once again becomes a barrier. In considering why convenience plays such a role in interactions, it could be determined that interaction with others requires the use of limited resources, with time being specifically associated with convenience. Time is limited and valuable, especially to students so when interaction is to occur then convenience relates to a ‘path-of-least-resistance’. The more convenient interaction is the more likely it is to occur. Other costs such as money can be used to increase convenience however for international students studying overseas, this is often a limited resource that must be carefully spent. There is a strong indication that the importance of convenience can be minimised when there is a strong relationship between an individual and another person(s). In this case the desire to interact on a more intimate level will overcome many of the other barriers that make that interaction less convenient.