Generating social connectedness
through status messages: Three
approaches using awareness systems

Abstract
With the advent of micro-blogging and the distribution
of short, status-conveying messages through social
networking platforms, instant messaging tools and
mobile phones, the current emotional or situational
state of a person can quickly be broadcasted to a group
of peers. This, in theory, can lead to an increased sense
of social connectedness among group members. In this
paper we describe three ongoing research approaches
towards the measurement and investigation of the role
and effects of status messages in awareness systems
and their impact on social connectedness. We believe
that a multi-method research approach, consisting of
quantitative and design science methods is a fruitful
way to investigate social connectedness and design
novel awareness systems. The paper closes with a
discussion on potential research questions for
investigating novel ways to measure and understand
the concept of social connectedness.
Keywords
Social connectedness, social presence, status
messages, awareness systems, social networking
ACM Classification Keywords
H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6):
Prototyping, J.4 Social and Behavioral Sciences:
Psychology; H.4.3 Communications Applications
Copyright is held by the author/owner(s).
CHI 2010, April 10–15, 2010, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
ACM 978-1-60558-930-5/10/04.
Felix Köbler
Chair for Information Systems
Technische Universität München
Boltzmannstr. 3
85748 Garching, Germany
felix.koebler@in.tum.de

Philip Koene
Chair for Information Systems
Technische Universität München
Boltzmannstr. 3
85748 Garching, Germany
philip.koene@in.tum.de

Helmut Krcmar
Chair for Information Systems
Technische Universität München
Boltzmannstr. 3
85748 Garching, Germany
krcmar@in.tum.de

Christoph Riedl
Chair for Information Systems
Technische Universität München
Boltzmannstr. 3
85748 Garching, Germany
riedlc@in.tum.de

Jan Marco Leimeister
Chair for Information Systems
Universität Kassel
Nora-Platiel-Str. 4
34127 Kassel, Germany
leimeister@uni-kassel.de

2

General Terms
Design, Measurement
Introduction
In recent years, advances in Internet technologies led
to the implementation of functions generating a
participative human-centric virtual environment. This
environment enables social interactions and
communication in large-scale online populations
bundled in social networking platforms or
asynchronous/synchronous text-based communication
networks, e.g. Facebook and Instant Messaging (IM)
tools. In parallel, a novel asynchronous communication
style evolved: a form of blogging limiting users or
applications to (automatically) generate messages
conveying information consisting of less than 200
characters (e.g. Twitter). The limitation of messages in
character length is commonly referred to as the micro-
blogging paradigm. This specific type of message
serves as ad-hoc status reports with regards to a user’s
current emotional, situational and geographical state
and is consecutively termed a status message. Status
messages are mostly distributed through various
communication channels (e.g. the web-frontend of a
blogging platform itself, integrated in the social
networking platforms, email, IM and/or mobile phones).
The implementation of status messages turn social
networking platforms or asynchronous/synchronous
text-based communication tools to awareness systems.
Awareness systems “help people to effortlessly
maintain awareness of each other’s whereabouts and
activities” [4] and are unobtrusively integrated in the
user’s virtual and/or non-virtual environment. In the
context of the presented approaches, awareness
systems or awareness-conveying functionalities are
applications or functionalities of an application that
enable an (automated) status message posting
whereas the input and output channel of posted
information is device- and technology-independent.
Awareness functionalities (automatically) convey
information on the general status (e.g. presence,
feelings or demands) of a user within the application
and between multiple applications (e.g. online, offline,
idle information in IM networks) which we assume
might generate social connectedness. In the underlying
paper we like to present our research approaches on
social connectedness in awareness systems that
combine (1) quantitative methods to understand status
message usage in large scale online populations, (2)
derive requirements for the design of awareness
systems building on status messages and (3) evaluate
implemented prototypes. The remainder of this paper is
organized as follows: First, we define the terminologies
relevant to the field of research, i.e. connectedness,
social presence awareness systems and awareness
conveying functionalities, based on existing literature.
This is followed by a brief description of related work
and research on awareness systems and social
presence in online communities. The subsequent
chapter outlines three research approaches that are
currently conducted, including brief prototype
descriptions and, if procurable, preliminary findings.
The paper closes with a discussion on potential
methodological and general research questions on
social connectedness.
Theoretical background
Theoretical importance of connectedness, social
presence and awareness
Connectedness can be described as the feeling of
belonging to a social group and implies the creation of

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bonding relationships. IJsselsteijn et al. [4] hypothesize
that for “this type of communication, the informational
content of the message is of secondary importance to
the emotional, relational content that is being
transmitted”. The concept of connectedness is related
to concepts of social presence and awareness, which
have also been studied in previous research [9]. The
difference between connectedness and social presence
can best be illustrated referring to IM communication,
as the awareness that peer users are online in the IM
network conveys connectedness even when there is no
message exchange.
Awareness systems and awareness-conveying
functionalities
According to above stated definition, we like to argue
that social networking platforms and IM tools,
facilitating the use of awareness-conveying
functionalities can be conceived as awareness systems,
notwithstanding that these applications serve a
primarily different user need. In the case of Facebook
for instance, the platform primarily serves the user as a
social networking platform, providing her with a variety
of functions that facilitate sharing user-generated
content (e.g. embedding pictures or videos),
commenting on the content and profiles of other users,
communicating with other users (text-based messaging
and posting of status messages) and establishing
networks of friends. However, in addition to that, the
status message functionality within the platform
enables users to post ad-hoc status messages on
emotional and situational states (cf. the micro-blogging
platform Twitter), consequently turning the platform
into an awareness system. The input of status message
information is device-independent since information can
additionally be posted via, e.g. mobile devices or third-
party applications. Skype and most of current IM
application versions (e.g. Google Talk, AIM), also allow
the user to post status messages, closely displayed to
user names in contact/buddy lists. Furthermore a
number of applications enable the information
conversion from third-party applications (e.g. iTunes)
to automatically generate status messages on, e.g.
artist and song title information that is currently played
on the device.
Related work on awareness systems and
social presence in online communities
Following IJsselsteijn et al. [4] the focus of research on
awareness systems in Human Computer Interaction
(HCI) and Computer Supported Cooperative Work
(CSCW) shifted from pioneering examples of awareness
systems, originally situated only in work environments,
to current trends in ambient intelligence, inducing the
development of awareness systems embedded in
home, work or mobile environments. Several
researchers have begun to look at presence information
provided by early IM applications (e.g. AOL’s Instant
Messenger), in mobile settings and the benefits of
sharing activity or location-based information. Bentley
and Metcalf [1] provide scholars with a detailed related
work description, including the development and
research of applications that share location information
among members within social networks or that enable
users to share motion information on mobile devices.
The scholars emphasize how the fusion of presence
information can create richer experiences than any of
the presence data taken alone. Conclusively, Bentley
and Metcalf [1] not only call for future research on how
presence information interplays with other presence or
situational context information, but on appropriate
design and display attributes of presence information

4
(e.g. status messages) in varying user settings. Shen
and Khalifa [11] note that existing research covering
(social) presence information focuses on social
communities, and explicitly point out the possible
differences to recently evolved social networking
platforms. Based on this related work, our research
approaches are driven by the following exemplary
research questions: What are the effects of status
messages on social connectedness among virtual
groups (and why)? What are usage patterns of status
messages and what constitutes different user types
(and why)? What determinants lead to which usage
pattern?
What are general requirements for design and display
principles of status messages? How does status
information interplay with other presence information
or situational context information? How can these
insights be used for the design and display of status
messages in awareness systems? What implications of
human interaction with awareness systems can be
demonstrated and documented in human and social
behavior?
Research design and methodological
approaches
In the following we like to present three research
approaches on social connectedness in awareness
systems. We currently pursue a two-fold
methodological approach using quantitative empirical
methods to learn about user behavior (e.g. usage
patterns of status messages) and design science [3] –
common in Information Systems and HCI research – to
build and evaluate prototype applications of awareness
systems. We believe that findings from quantitative
studies deliver important insights for the design of
awareness systems, generating social connectedness.
In the following we describe a quantitative study
facilitating a survey on the social networking platform
Facebook and two prototypes that are embedded in the
user’s natural environment by employing Near Field
Communication (NFC) technology, allowing them an
(automated) generation of status messages. The
prototypes are fully functional and planned to be used
in studies on social connectedness.
A social sixth sense on Facebook?
In order to explore the status message functionality
implemented in the social networking platform
Facebook, we created an online questionnaire. The
questionnaire was linguistically adjusted to fit
terminologies commonly used by individuals in a
specific age group (estimation of 20-35 years on basis
of friend networks) with a strong Internet usage
background. While designing the questionnaire, we
focused on simplicity and therefore excluded
demographical data (i.e., gender, age, nationality, etc.)
to boost participation and rapidly retrieve completed
questionnaire data samples. Furthermore, we were
primarily interested in the statistical documentation of
the general usage of micro-blogging functionalities and
possible emerging usage patterns. The questionnaire
was distributed within the Facebook platform by posting
the survey URL through Facebook’s status messaging
function. The results of the yet unpublished survey
(N=108) suggest that the use of status messaging
generates a feeling of connectedness between users.
The analyses revealed that, the more individuals use
their status message function to actively reveal
information about themselves, the more connected
they feel. Connectedness seems the result of active
information sharing modulated by the amount of

5
information shared, rather than by the type of
information an individual is sharing. This is consistent
to findings reported by Rettie [9]. These preliminary
findings could serve as a starting point on possible
novel design and display principles for status
messages, e.g. frequency of updates and display time
of status messages.
NFriendConnector – Facebook and Boundaryless Social
Networking
Previous research has reported that the social
networking platform Facebook is often used by its
members to connect to people they know from their
offline worlds, as opposed to initiating new online social
connections with pure strangers [6, 7, 10]. However, as
an online social networking application, Facebook does
not directly support this pattern of usage, since it is still
commonly used through a computer terminal. The
NFriendConnector prototype allows for a natural, non-
intrusive way to generate status messages with social
content at the point where offline social interaction
occurs and thus enables the measurement of the
impact of these messages on the users’ feeling of social
connectedness. By simply making physical contact
between two NFC-devices, the Facebook profile
information of both users is transferred, and Facebook
functions can be invoked. In future version, the
automated status messages could be enriched by real
geo-/location-based information retrieved from data
generated either by a GPS receiver or cell identification
in combination with other applications such as Google
Maps.
LocaTag – An NFC-based system enhancing IM tools
with real-time user location information
The aim of the prototype is to improve communication
and collaboration within a group through automated
and real-time dissemination of presence information,
using status messages in IM software. The prototype
enhances IM tools with real-time location information
through the use of NFC-enabled mobile devices. It
allows a user to automatically set her Skype status
message to a location information stored on a NFC-tag
by touching the tag with a NFC-enabled mobile device.
Given, that the user already uses a NFC-enabled device
as a mobile phone and Skype as a means of online
communication, LocaTag enables the retrieval of
location information with minimal cost to the user and a
non-intrusive, ambient display of that location
information as a status messages. The prototype might
allow us to measure the influence of status messages
conveying location and presence information on the
feeling of social connectedness in collaborative groups.
Discussion
Due to the style of distribution of the questionnaire and
data collection within the Facebook platform, we
recognize some limitations, as results cannot
necessarily be regarded as representative of other
social networking platforms, asynchronous messaging
technologies or the Internet population in general.
Although the study delivered first insights on status
message usage and effects on user behavior, the
compiled survey items were not fully validated
beforehand and were mostly base on pre-existing
publications (e.g. [2, 5, 8]). Therefore, the question is
how to evaluate and measure the correlation between
status messages and social connectedness. Possible
constructs and survey items are found in various

6
existing questionnaires, e.g. the Connectedness
Questionnaire, the Affective Benefits and Costs in
Communication Questionnaire (ABC-Q), the IPO Social
Presence Questionnaire or the Group Attitude Scale
(GAS), but operating experience is rarely documented
in literature. Furthermore we aim to measure the
influence of various parameters of status messages on
the message’s effect regarding social connectedness,
including principles for the (automated) generation of
content and the best display of the message. Currently,
we are looking for appropriate research methods and
constructs to measure possible effects. What is the
optimized level of automation for status message
generation? A certain level of automation is most likely
necessary, in order to make the generation of status
messages, e.g. with location information, practical and
less of a chore for the users. However, a high level of
automation could also make status messages
impersonal and thereby limit their influence on social
connectedness. On the issue of the best display of
status messages in awareness systems, there is also
the question of display time and update frequency.
Possibly outdated status messages, carrying false
information (e.g. location information) should not be
displayed and could therefore be equipped with a lease
that limits its lifespan. What are further appropriate
filtering mechanisms? We believe that a multi-method
research approach, including quantitative and design
science methods is a necessary and fruitful approach to
measure and investigate the interplay of status
messages and the feeling of social connectedness, and
to identify the relevant parameters to leverage the full
potential of status messages in that regard.
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