Understanding group communication in rural India

Abstract

In this paper, we present our study that was based on group exercises undertaken in an Indian village. We wanted to understand how co-located and non co-located groups communicate with each other, such that a technology solution best suited to the context and needs of rural Indian users are developed. We highlight our findings and suggest some design avenues. One of our findings was a strong preference for proximate group experience with aural and visual cues. The study enabled identifying guidelines to design a rural-India group communication solution. Supporting the formation of subgroups to increase efficiency of discussion emerged as an important aspect. Moreover, existence of an additional channel for communication through non-verbal cues such as gestures, facial expressions and body language was discovered to have an important bearing on a satisfactory communication experience in a group.