Although they have become daily and banal, meetings in teleworking videoconference do not have a clear label or pre -established rules. One point seems to be unanimous: distance meetings should always be done with the lit camera. However, exceptions exist.
Posted at 9:00 a.m.
“It’s insulting and it lacks respect!” »»
Chloé Simard, 36, is project manager in an environment. She works 100 % of the house and spends most of her zoom days. She deplores that some of her colleagues do not light their camera in a meeting.
“Some never do it,” she says, “and my boss says nothing. I find it flat and frustrating. We do not have the same reading, we do not have the same exchanges, when we do not see the person. »»
She is not wrong. According to François Courcy, professor of psychology at the University of Sherbrooke, 55 to 58 % of the communication goes through the non-verbal. The tone of the voice alone represents 38 % of communication.
“It goes badly if the person does not speak during the meeting and that we do not see him,” he says.
Clear rules
Without these information, crucial to communicate well, the interlocutor cannot adjust his speech. Ideally, the cameras always remain lit during the meetings so that everyone can see each other.
Dave Saint-Amour, professor in the UQAM Psychology Department, is of the same opinion. He believes that a “face -to -face” meeting is always preferable, but if it is done at a distance, it has the advantage of being well prepared.
What does that mean? First of all, that the rules are announced. “What is allowed and what’s not?” he asks. It must be clear and clear for everyone. Is it said that we want the cameras to stay open? »»
Visio meetings should not be too long, recalls Mr. Saint-Amour.
“After every hour or a half, we should agree for ten minutes of break,” he said. Also, during the meeting, if you want to get up, stretch, fly, you can turn off temporarily. It is for our good. »»
-Mental pauses
He specifies that the brain needs cognitive rest: in a zoom meeting, workers feel observed, in a sort of constant alert state, as if it was necessary to be ready to react at all times.
“We are all a little paranoid,” he comments, “our brain will assume that there is always at least one person who looks at us. So we stay on the hot seat. We tend to interpret all the little signs, to fall into hypervigilance. »»
The attention is not eternal, underlines Dave Saint-Amour: on average, our brain remains attentive on a task, in a sustained and efficient way, from 20 to 30 minutes.
Keeping your camera on during the Reunion in Visio is also a business culture matter. If everyone does, it’s more annoying to turn off …
Privacy
There are some downsides, believes François Courcy. For example, if someone eats or has a technological limitation (poor connection, no accessible computer, etc.). Or, if the meeting is held outside the normal office hours. “You have to adjust,” he said. I think it’s important to stay flexible and respect privacy. »»
According to him, discernment and judgment are important. The expectations must be named and ideally, it is the host of Reunion who announces them at the start of the game.
The challenge of being visible or not on the screen also depends on the format and the objective of Reunion.
“If it’s a conference where 100 people are online, it’s different,” believes Mr. Courcy, “we don’t have to be on the screen. It is also linked to the subject. For example, in a conference on mental health and suicide involving 60 people, no one had opened their camera … it does not work! One has the impression of speaking in the void for a delicate subject. »»
In short, if the meeting is bidirectional and there are exchanges, it is informed that everyone keeps their camera on.
Look on the screen
Something to explore: choosing a mode where only the person who speaks appears on the screen or even, where each participant appears in an equal size window. This takes a little pressure from those who attend the meeting.
And to put an end to dysmorphia, either the fact of worrying about the defects perceived of the physical appearance which are not visible or very little by the others, Dave Saint-Amour suggests to close the window where we are constantly seen.
“We can watch ourselves say hello, but afterwards, we close. It is not natural to have a mirror effect and to see yourself all the time! »»
