Relationships: Virtual relationships in social media Flashcards
1
Q
What is Reduced Cues theory - Sproull and Kieser
A
- CMC (computer monitored communication) relationships are less effective than Ftf because they lack many of the cues we depend on.
- Leads to de-individualisation because it reduces people’s sense of individual identity, which encourages disinhibition in relating to others.
- Deindividuation.
2
Q
What is disinhibition
A
- disregard for social conventions, impulsivity.
3
Q
What is deindividuation
A
- the loss of self-awareness in groups.
4
Q
What is the hyper personal model (Walther)
A
- argues online relationships can be more personal and involve greater disclosure than FtF ones.
- CMC relationships can develop quickly as disclosure happens earlier, and once established they are more intense and intimate.
- this also means that they can end quickly because the high excitement level of interactions is not matched by the level of trust between the relationship partners.
5
Q
Explain Johnson’s study on self-disclosure in computer communication
A
- Undergraduate students.
- Found people disclose more about themselves when communicating via computer than they do face to face, and using video reduces the level of self-disclosure in computer communication.
- In condition 1: half of pairs discussed face to face and half discussed it from separate rooms using a computer chat programme.
- condition 2: all of the pairs used the chat programme, but half of them also had a video connection, so they could see each other.
6
Q
Explain how self-awareness might affect computer communication (Joinson’s self-disclosure)
A
- Joinson’s study:
- High private self-awareness and low public self-awareness resulted in significantly higher levels of self-disclosure.
- Anonymity and focusing on your thoughts and feelings to express them in writing.
7
Q
What is public self awareness
A
- this is being aware of how you appear to others.
8
Q
What is private self awareness
A
- this is looking inwards – being aware of what is going on inside your head.
9
Q
Explain the absence of gating in virtual relationships (McKenna and Bargh)
A
- Ftf: physical unattractiveness, social shyness, blushing can negatively affect attraction.
- Mckenna and Bargh (1999) argued that a huge advantage of CMC is the absence of gating.
10
Q
What is gating
A
- In face-to-face relationships, individuals rely on easily discernible physical features such as attractiveness or age to help them decide who would be a suitable partner.
- These features are referred to as ‘gates’ and often prevent those who are less attractive or socially skilled from forming relationships.
11
Q
(-) explain how there is lack of research support for the reduced cues theory (Walther and Tidwell)
A
- Walther and Tidwell (1995) point out that people in online interaction use other cues such as the style and the timing of their message.
- E.g. taking the time to reply to an online message is interpreted as more of an intimate act.
- There are subtle differences which can be used in CMC that are similar to FtF relationships.
- Acronyms such as LOL, emoticons and emojis, are used as effective substitutes for facial expressions and tone of voice.
12
Q
(+) explain how there is research support for the hyper personal model (Whitty and Joinson)
A
- people are motivated to self-disclose in CMC in ways that are sometimes ‘hyperhonest’ or ‘hyperdishonest’.
- Whitty and Joinson (2009) have evidence for this:
-> online discussions: found the questions tended to be very direct, probing and sometimes intimate. These kinds of questions would never been asked in an FtF meeting as it would be seen as ‘going too far’.
-> FtF discussion tends to be ‘small talk’. It was also found that people had no issue in answering the personal questions online and were direct and to the point.
13
Q
(+) explain research support for the absence of gating (McKenna and Bargh)
A
- McKenna and Bargh (2000) looked at CMC use by lonely and socially anxious people. They found that these people were able to express their ‘true selves’ more than in FtF situations.
- Of the romantic relationships that initially formed online, 70% survived more than 2 years.
-> This is a higher proportion than for relationships formed in the offline world.
14
Q
(-) explain how research on CMC ignores other types of CMC
A
- Extent and depth of self-disclosure depends on type of CMC being used.
- Internet dating: self-disclosure is reduced because communicators anticipate meeting Ftf.
- Research that approaches CMC as a single concept neglects its richness and variety = lacks validity.
15
Q
what is the strangers on the train effect (Bargh)
A
- strangers on the train effect -> When you are aware that other people do not know your identity, you feel less accountable for your actions and behaviour.
-> So you may well disclose more about yourself to a stranger than to even your most intimate partner.
