virtual relationships Flashcards
self disclosure - reduced cues theory
sproull & kiesler - CMC relationships less effective than FtF - lack many cues we normally depend on in FtF interactions, including non verbal cues like appearance.
CMC particularly lacks cues to emotional state e.g facial expressions and tone of voice - leads to deindividuation, encouraging disinhibition in relating to others so virtual relationships likely to involve blunt and aggressive communication.
results in reluctance to self disclose - unlikely to initiate relationship with someone who’s impersonal or reveal innermost feelings to them
self disclosure - hyperpersonal model
walther - CMC relationships can be more personal and develop quickly as self disclosure happens earlier and once established, they’re more intense and intimate. can also end more quickly as high excitement level of interaction not matched by level of trust between partners.
walther - selective self presentation - people online have more control over what to disclose and cues sent - easier to manipulate self disclosure to promote intimacy by self presenting in positive and idealised way.
anonymity promotes self disclosure and makes relationships hyperpersonal - bargh et al - outcome of this is like strangers on train effect in FtF relationships - aware people dont know your identity so feel less accountable for behaviour so disclose more about yourself to stranger
evaluation - lack of support for reduced cues theory
theory is wrong to suggest nonverbal cues are entirely missing from CMC - different rather than absent.
walther & tidwell - people in online interactions use other cues like style and timing of messages - emojis used as effective substitutes for facial expressions and tone of voice in FtF interactions - shows CMC interactions can be just as personal as FtF ones and that its possible to express emotional states in virtual relationships
evaluation - research support for hyperpersonal model
whitty & joinson - evidence to show in CMC people motivated to self disclose in ways that are sometimes hyperhonest or hyperdishonest
questions asked in online discussions tend to be very direct, probing and intimate - different from FtF convos which are often limited to small talk.
findings support central assertion of model - way we self disclose in CMC is designed to present ourselves in exaggeratedly positive light
absence of gating
gate - any obstacle to formation of a relationship. FtF interaction is gated - involves features that can interfere with early development of relationship, e.g unattractiveness, a stammer, social anxiety.
mckenna & bargh - absence of gating is advantage in CMC - relationship can develop to point where self disclosure becomes more frequent and deeper.
absence of gating refocuses attention on self disclosure and away from superficial features
evaluation - support for absence of gating
mckenna and bargh - looked at CMC use by lonely and socially anxious people - found they were able to express their ‘true selves’ more than in FtF situations
of romantic relationships that initially formed online, 70% survived more than 2 years - higher proportion than relationships formed FtF
