UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA (UNISA)
College of Science, Engineering and Technology
⋄
ASSIGNMENT 2
Year Module – 2026
⋄
Module Code: INF3720
Module Name: Human-Computer Interaction
Assignment No.: Assignment 2
Semester: Year Module 2026
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for INF3720
at the University of South Africa.
, UNISA | INF3720 Assignment 2 – HCI
Section 2.1: Chapter 5 – Social Interaction
Question 1: Social Presence and Its Absence in Remote Learning (4 Marks)
Definition of Social Presence
Social presence refers to the degree to which a person feels genuinely connected to others dur-
ing computer-mediated communication – the sense that other participants are real, immediate,
and engaged (Weidlich, Orhan Goksun and Kreijns, 2022). Kreijns, Xu and Weidlich (2021:5)
describe it as the ability of participants to “project themselves socially and emotionally” into
an online environment, such that co-learners feel like real people rather than distant, faceless
text on a screen.
Effect on Student Engagement in the Case
When social presence is low, students stop feeling part of a community. In the South African
university case, three problems follow directly from this.
First, without the visual and tonal cues of face-to-face contact, students on MS Teams could
not easily gauge whether their lecturer was engaged or whether their peers were paying at-
tention. Rogers, Sharp and Preece (2019) note that in text-based or low-bandwidth video
settings, the subtle signals that sustain a shared social atmosphere – eye contact, nods, ambi-
ent sounds of a classroom – are simply missing. Students described the lectures as hollow, a
complaint that aligns closely with what research calls low social presence.
Second, the fragmentation between MS Teams and WhatsApp created two parallel social
worlds. Informal bonding happened in WhatsApp, while formal learning happened in Teams.
Because the emotional texture of the group existed only in WhatsApp, Teams sessions felt
transactional rather than social. This split weakens the shared group identity that normally
sustains academic motivation (Weidlich et al., 2022).
Third, students reported difficulty with turn-taking in online discussions. When there are
no visual cues to signal who wants to speak next, conversations become stilted. People hesi-
tate to interrupt, then stay silent entirely, reducing the back-and-forth exchange that makes
discussion feel social and alive (Rogers et al., 2019).
Page 1 of 13
College of Science, Engineering and Technology
⋄
ASSIGNMENT 2
Year Module – 2026
⋄
Module Code: INF3720
Module Name: Human-Computer Interaction
Assignment No.: Assignment 2
Semester: Year Module 2026
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for INF3720
at the University of South Africa.
, UNISA | INF3720 Assignment 2 – HCI
Section 2.1: Chapter 5 – Social Interaction
Question 1: Social Presence and Its Absence in Remote Learning (4 Marks)
Definition of Social Presence
Social presence refers to the degree to which a person feels genuinely connected to others dur-
ing computer-mediated communication – the sense that other participants are real, immediate,
and engaged (Weidlich, Orhan Goksun and Kreijns, 2022). Kreijns, Xu and Weidlich (2021:5)
describe it as the ability of participants to “project themselves socially and emotionally” into
an online environment, such that co-learners feel like real people rather than distant, faceless
text on a screen.
Effect on Student Engagement in the Case
When social presence is low, students stop feeling part of a community. In the South African
university case, three problems follow directly from this.
First, without the visual and tonal cues of face-to-face contact, students on MS Teams could
not easily gauge whether their lecturer was engaged or whether their peers were paying at-
tention. Rogers, Sharp and Preece (2019) note that in text-based or low-bandwidth video
settings, the subtle signals that sustain a shared social atmosphere – eye contact, nods, ambi-
ent sounds of a classroom – are simply missing. Students described the lectures as hollow, a
complaint that aligns closely with what research calls low social presence.
Second, the fragmentation between MS Teams and WhatsApp created two parallel social
worlds. Informal bonding happened in WhatsApp, while formal learning happened in Teams.
Because the emotional texture of the group existed only in WhatsApp, Teams sessions felt
transactional rather than social. This split weakens the shared group identity that normally
sustains academic motivation (Weidlich et al., 2022).
Third, students reported difficulty with turn-taking in online discussions. When there are
no visual cues to signal who wants to speak next, conversations become stilted. People hesi-
tate to interrupt, then stay silent entirely, reducing the back-and-forth exchange that makes
discussion feel social and alive (Rogers et al., 2019).
Page 1 of 13
