Technical problems on video calls can cause uncanniness, which influences real-world decisions

If you didn't get your dream job, you might be able to blame your internet provider. Technical glitches on video calls in healthcare, job interviews, and parole hearings can affect real-world decisions, a study has found. The researchers suggest new technologies may even be making the problem worse.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns made video meetings more commonplace, questions remain about how effectively they replace face-to-face meetings. However, around a third of online meetings are hit by connectivity issues, including frozen screens, lag, and distorted audio.

Columbia University assistant professor Melanie Brucks and colleagues conducted an experiment in which more than 3,000 participants watched job interview recordings in a setting designed to replicate a video call. Calls that included glitches were less likely to result in a recommendation for hire compared to those without. Meanwhile, among 497 participants who listened to healthcare advice, 77 percent reported ...