❤️ Relationships: Virtual relationships

Question 1

Self-disclosure in virtual relationships

Answer 1

SD = revealing personal information about yourself and revealing more as a romantic develops - ‘onion metaphor’
- the influence of social media has seen people develop and maintain romantic relationships without ever meeting the person - online
- SD varies depending on whether one is revealing information publicly or privately
- online anonymity

Question 2

Reduced Cues theory

Answer 2

Sproull and Kiesler (1986)
- Computer mediated communication (CMC) are less effective then face to face ones as they lack the cues we usually receive in person
- include non-verbal cues such as physical appearance
- De-individualisation - reduces individuals sense of individual identity causing disinhibition to others.
Virtual relationships usually involve blunt or potentially aggressive conversations
- You are unlikely to want a relationship with someone who is impersonal

Question 3

Hyperpersonal model

Answer 3

Walther (1996, 2001)
- The hyper personal model predicts people are likely to be either “hyper-honest” or “hyper-dishonest” in their self disclosure
- CMC relationships develop quickly because self-disclosure happens earlier, thus the relationship becomes more intense and more intimate
- Can end more quickly - boom and bust phenomenon (Cooper and Sportlari ,1997)
- Selective self-presentation
- Anonymity

Question 4

Hyperpersonal model: selective self-presentation

Answer 4

• the sender of the message has more time to manipulate their image
• makes it easier to manipulate self-disclosure to promote intimacy, by self-presenting in an idealised way

Question 5

Hyperpersonal model - Anonymity

Answer 5

• Bargh et al (2002) - strangers on a train effect
• When you are aware that other people don’t know your identity, you feel less accountable for your behaviour
• you may disclose more about yourself to a stranger

Question 6

Yum and Hara 2005

Answer 6

• Found American participants reported that greater disclosure in virtual relationships was associated with more trust while Korean participants reported this led to less trust
• SD was not a factor for Japanese participants
• Presents an issue of cultural bias as we assume self-disclosure is viewed similarly with the same effects across cultures and this is clearly not true demonstrated by the research.
• This would limit our generalisations to possibly only Western cultures.

Question 7

Support for the Hyperpersonal model

Answer 7

Whitty et al (2009)
- found evidence to support when examining online discussions.
- people tended to ask questions which were direct and intimate which was very different to face to face discussions where the focus would be on small talk
- These findings support the assertion that the way we self-disclose in CMC interactions are designed to present ourselves in an exaggeratedly positive light which aids relationship formation

Question 8

What are gates in virtual relationships

Answer 8

• a feature or obstacle that could interfere with the development of a relationship
• can be physical e.g. speech impediment or a personality trait e.g shyness
• Two people could be compatible and attracted to one another - but a gate prevents this from happening

Question 9

Advantage of computer-mediated communication: Absence of gating

Answer 9

allows relationships to develop and self-disclosure become more frequent and deeper which wouldn’t necessarily occur in face to face interactions.

• As relationships progress, physical beauty may be less damaging to the relationship as it would have been in the real world with face to face interactions.
• This enables people who are less attractive or socially inept to be able to express their true self, building closer more meaningful relationships than they would be able to in face to face relationships

Question 10

Absence of gating (Zhao et al (2008)

Answer 10

Online social networks empowered ‘gated’ individuals to present the identities they hoped to establish but were unable to do so in face to face situations
The reduction of gating obstacles in the virtual environment also enabled people to bend the truth and project a more socially desirable version of themselves rather than their real self.

Question 11

CMC vs ftf - McKenna and Bargh (2000)

Answer 11

• looked at CMC use by lonely and socially anxious people
• People were able to express their true selves more than in face to face situations
• Of the romantic relationships they formed online, 70% survived more than 2 years
• higher proportion than real world formations
• suggests romantic relationships beginning online can be more durable and long lasting than those that start offline.

Question 12

Peters (2005) Mediating effect of personality

Answer 12

• The research suggests that your personality type acts as a “ filter” for how technology and used

Here is how the two groups typically differ:
- introverts - often report a higher sense of social presence in CMC
- Extroverts - may feel a lower sense of presence compared to face to face

Reduced social anxiety: for introverts, the lack of non verbal cues (eye contact, physical proximity) reduces cognitive load. This allows them to focus more on the interaction, leading to a stronger psychological connection

Question 13

Explanations of virtual relationships

Answer 13

Offline relationships areoften hindered by initial, superficial, or “gating” factors such as
physical appearance, social anxiety, or stammering.

Online communication allows people to bypass these, enabling them to form connections based on personality, shared interests, and deeper self-disclosure.
Individuals, particularly those who are shy or socially anxious, were found to be better able
to express their “true selves” online than face-to-face. Many of these online-initiated relationships successfully transitioned into the “real” world.