A Meeting is Not a Meeting is Not a Meeting: Implications for Teleconferencing

Abstract

The behavior of participants and the events that occurred in 48 academic, business, and government meetings were recorded using observational techniques and a participant questionnaire. Meetings were compared to determine if and how associated communication requirements differed due to: (a) the purpose of the meeting, (b) the group conducting the meeting (academic, business, or government), and (c) the “size/complexity” of the meeting. Differences due to purpose were untestable because meetings were not conducted for single purposes; rather, meetings served multiple functions. Group differences, that is, whether a meeting was academic, business, or government, had no effect on the variables tested. Meetings of the three groups were judged similar in nature and communication processes. Meetings did differ, however, along a size/complexity dimension. Three distinct types of meetings—small, medium, and large—were identified and shown to differ in complexity and communication characteristics. Implications of these and other observed differences among meetings for teleconferencing meetings are reported.