An Unusual Encounter with Oneself: Exploring the Impact of Self-view on Online Meeting Outcomes

Helping overcome distance, the use of videoconferencing tools has surged during the pandemic. To shed light on the consequences of videoconferencing at work, this study takes a granular look at the implications of the self-view feature for meeting outcomes. Building on self-awareness research and self-regulation theory, we argue that by heightening the state of self-awareness, self-view engagement depletes participants’ mental resources and thereby can undermine online meeting outcomes. Evaluation of our theoretical model on a sample of 179 employees reveals a nuanced picture. Self-view engagement while speaking and while listening is positively associated with self-awareness, which, in turn, is negatively associated with satisfaction with meeting process, perceived productivity, and meeting enjoyment. The criticality of the communication role is put forward: looking at self while listening to other attendees has a negative direct and indirect effect on meeting outcomes; however, looking at self while speaking produces equivocal effects.