How virtual meetings bend our brains (and how to make them good bends)

Some science for the curious

Virtual meetings – love them or hate them – they’re widely used and here to stay. Uptake is very high, driven by the pandemic and ongoing Work From Home culture (with lively debate right now regarding that for government).

With such pervasive usage the scene has been set for scientific investigation into how we interact with and are affected by this meeting type – which could be applied to improve our use of virtual meetings.

Here are some starters for 10 that I found interesting, and I hope you will too:

1. This article states that 72% of us use virtual backgrounds (for various interesting reasons – to impress others, to show alignment with them etc – fascinating in itself), and that the background matters to how tired you and others on the call may become (Virtual Fatigue). The finding is you’re best using either the blur effect or a static nature image – give it a try.
2. Mirror mirror on the wall….This article finds that looking at images of ourselves as we speak is not great when we are listening to others, but is great when we’re the one speaking (no recommendation there, but I’m off to see if I can find a Teams config that will only show me myself when I’m speaking).
3. If you’ve ever felt a little sleepy on a virtual meeting – here’s an explanationThis article that compares drowsiness and cognitive performance between in-person and virtual meetings – key finding including that under-stimulation on virtual meetings is a key driver of drowsiness and decreased cognitive performance AND is mitigated by high workplace engagement (so organisations – get those engagement ratings up !!).
4. Your teams can be in the zone on virtual meetingsThis article explains how/why the virtual meeting experience can create a state of flow (a benefit that surprised me) and the importance of a culture of authentic emotions/culture to that