Methods

Herring analyzed the discursive practices and the professed values of women and men who participate in online discussion groups known as listservs. She also analyzed individual and universal netiquette guidelines, in an attempt to codify any gender differences found. Her research was made up of three distinct areas ñ behavior, values, and netiquette guidelines ñ and she used various methodological approaches for each. Herringís research methodology is characterized by triangulation.

The first part of her research was geared towards assessing the "amount and style of participation" of the subscribers of nine online discussion lists, "controlling for gender."(Herring, 117) These lists had a "varying concentration of female subscribers (from 11% to 88%)"(Herring, 117) In addition to daily ethnographic observation, ranging from two weeks to three years in length, Herring conducted discourse analysis on selected list discussions and codified findings in regard to the degree and nature of contributions. The key independent variable was gender.

When Herring turned to the analysis of gendered values in relation to CMC, however, she decided on a much different approach. In this case an anonymous survey was distributed among subscribers to eight listserv discussion lists. She analyzed 300 responses, 60% by males and 40% by females. The questions on the survey included three open-ended questions inquiring about the likes and dislikes of participants in addition to what they would like to see changed in regard to other peopleís online behaviour. In addition, she analyzed the "metadiscourse" of the lists in regard to that which is deemed suitable behavior, and that which is frowned upon.

Herringís final methodological approach involved a content analysis of "explicit netiquette statements,"(Herring, 117) which were sent to list subscribers. The introduction messages of seven lists were examined, in addition to two sets of general and universally recognized netiquette guidelines. The content of these guidelines was codified and categorized, and then it was related to the findings in her first two sections ñ behavior and values. Her findings, in each of these areas, point to the persistence of gender discrepancies in regard to asynchronous communication patterns on listservs.

 

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