Archaeology Frontier

If useful explanations are to be provided about the relationship between computer mediated communication (CMC) technologies and online behavior, then a longer-term perspective needs to be taken than the current focus of CMC researchers. This paper provides such a perspective by outlining in theoretical terms how a cyber-archaeology of virtual communities can be conducted. In archaeology, researchers focus on cultural artifacts. A similar focus on the cultural artifacts of virtual communities should be a focus for CMC researchers as these artifacts can provide an integrative framework for a community's life, be it virtual or real. It is proposed that CMC researchers pursue cyber-archaeology by systematically examining and modeling the framework for virtual community life provided by their cultural artifacts.

The systematic exploration of cyber-space via cyber-archaeology cannot proceed without adequate linguistic tools that allow for taxonomy. The first step in the creation of such a taxonomy is to distinguish between virtual communities and their cyber-place, the virtual settlement. The second, is to define and operationalize the term virtual settlement so that they can be systematically characterized and modeled. With this new terminology, it is possible to detail a cyber-archaeology where technological determinism is replaced with the notion of bounded hierarchies and material behavior. The theoretical outline will show how cultural artifacts can play a role in constraining the forms virtual settlements can sustain. The modeling of the boundaries of virtual settlements via cyber-archaeology should dramatically increase our understanding of communication in general.

Introduction

This paper confronts the question of how to provide explanations about the relationship between technology and online behavior that go beyond the specifics of current responses to new communication technologies. It does this by taking a longer-term perspective than is generally the focus of CMC researchers by outlining in theoretical terms how a cyber-archaeology of virtual communities can be conducted.

In order to proceed with the theoretical outline it will first be necessary to examine the two dominant and contrasting popular uses of the term virtual community. The first simply equates virtual communities with various forms of group-CMC. The second holds that virtual communities are new forms of 'community' created via the use of various forms of CMC. An examination of these definitions highlights how virtual communities are more than just a series of CMC messages. They are a sociological phenomena. The review thus demonstrates the need to distinguish between a virtual community's cyber-place and the virtual community itself. A virtual community's cyber-place will be termed a virtual settlement.

Once we have a term to describe a virtual community's cyber-place, virtual settlement, their essential features can be listed and details given of how individual virtual settlements can be methodically characterised. With this new terminology it is possible to detail a cyber-archaeology where technological determinism is replaced with the notion of bounded hierarchies and material behavior. In particular the theoretical outline will show how cultural artifacts can play a role in constraining the sustainable forms virtual settlements can take because of human cognitive processing limits.