The Promise and Peril of Parallel Chat in Video Meetings for Work

Sarkar, Advait and Rintel, Sean and Borowiec, Damian and Bergmann, Rachel and Gillett, Sharon and Bragg, Danielle and Baym, Nancy and Sellen, Abigail (2021) The Promise and Peril of Parallel Chat in Video Meetings for Work. In: Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Extended Abstracts (CHI ’21 Extended Abstracts) :. ACM Press, JPN. ISBN 9781450380959

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Abstract

We report the opportunities and challenges of parallel chat in workrelated video meetings, drawing on a study of Microsoft employees’ remote meeting experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that parallel chat allows groups to communicate flexibly without interrupting the main conversation, coordinate action around shared resources, and also improves inclusivity. On the other hand, parallel chat can also be distracting, overwhelming, and cause information asymmetries. Further, we find that whether an individual views parallel chat as a net positive in meetings is subject to the complex interactions between meeting type, personal habits, and intentional group practices. We suggest opportunities for tools and practices to capitalise on the strengths of parallel chat and mitigate its weaknesses.