Loud and clear: Voice notes could improve workplace communication, research finds

A switch to voice notes can help reduce ambiguity in workplace communications, and in turn reduce negative experiences, according to a newly-published study of workplace wellbeing.

Researchers from the World Wellbeing Movement and the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford presented participants with three common work scenarios between an employee and their line manager. Messages either took the form of a written email or required listening to an identically-worded voice note.

After reading the email or listening to the voice note, participants were then asked for their subjective interpretation of the message: positive, negative, or neutral.

Both communication methods are examples of ‘asynchronous communication’ – communication that does not take place in real time – and are relied upon more than ever in an era of remote and hybrid work as well as increasing cross-border (and cross-time zone) collaboration.

In two of the three scenarios, respondents rated the messages sent via voice notes as significantly less ambiguous than those sent via email, and negative interpretations of the messages were considerably reduced.

The researchers found gender differences when voice notes did not reduce ambiguity. In that case – such as in the final scenario – they actually increased negative interpretation among men.

And regardless of gender, participants who were already reporting higher levels of stress were more likely to interpret any ambiguous email message negatively.

Such findings highlight the complex nature of workplace communication, and the role which clear and effective communication can play in our wellbeing at work.

Sarah Cunningham, Managing Director of the World Wellbeing Movement and lead author of the new paper, said: “Many of us can relate to that moment of opening an email from a manager or colleague, and feeling our stomach drop. Email is efficient, but it also strips away non-verbal cues that help us interpret the sender’s intent. Our study shows that when a message is ambiguous, people are far more likely to jump to negative conclusions.

“A short voice note won’t solve every communication problem, nor should it replace email entirely, but when it reduces ambiguity in short, conversational-style messages like those we tested in this study, it can prevent needless misunderstandings, especially in hybrid and geographically-dispersed teams.

“Further research is needed to understand which other communication modes or interventions might reduce ambiguity even more effectively in asynchronous work, but our findings suggest that reducing ambiguity itself should be a central focus for any people leader seeking to strengthen communication.”

Dr William Fleming, a Research Fellow at the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford and second author of the new paper, said: “Voice notes are increasingly common in our digital lives, so these findings demonstrate their value for workplaces too. Reducing ambiguity in workplace communications is something we should all strive for. 

“The variation we find in the different voice notes highlights that we have to think about who is receiving messages, as well as the task at hand.

“For example, we find that men aren’t as receptive to voice notes when the messages do not bring clarity, which could tell us something about men’s comfort with different technologies, or about men-to-men relationships. There’s still more to learn.”

‘Could This Have Been a Voice Note? An Experiment Comparing Voice Notes and Emails’ is published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior Reports.