Lightweight Social Computing Tools for Undergraduate Research Community Building

TL;DR

Problem addressed: onboarding new undergraduate researchers often suffers from impostor syndrome and social barriers in traditional lab environments. Approach: implement a BeReal-inspired SOSN via a Wizard-of-Oz photoBot delivering three prompt types (Free Post, Selected User(s), Prompted) to a computing lab over 14 days with N=17 participants. Findings: prompts increased togetherness and peripheral awareness, with higher engagement when users were explicitly tagged; 88% continued posting after the trial, and some conversations reached multi-person threads (e.g., a Hobby prompt sparked a 17-message conversation). Significance: demonstrates a lightweight, scalable strategy to foster cross-location belonging in computing education without heavy resource investment.

Abstract

Many barriers exist when new members join a research community, including impostor syndrome. These barriers can be especially challenging for undergraduate students who are new to research. In our work, we explore how the use of social computing tools in the form of spontaneous online social networks (SOSNs) can be used in small research communities to improve sense of belonging, peripheral awareness, and feelings of togetherness within an existing CS research community. Inspired by SOSNs such as BeReal, we integrated a Wizard-of-Oz photo sharing bot into a computing research lab to foster community building among members. Through a small sample of lab members (N = 17) over the course of 2 weeks, we observed an increase in participants' sense of togetherness based on pre- and post-study surveys. Our surveys and semi-structured interviews revealed that this approach has the potential to increase awareness of peers' personal lives, increase feelings of community, and reduce feelings of disconnectedness.

Figures (2)

• Figure 1: We designed three different prompt types for photoBot. Free Post (A), Selected User(s) (B), and Prompted (C). On the right are examples of photos sent by participants.
• Figure 2: Pre- and post-survey responses show a positive trend toward increased feelings of inclusion.