Discuss what psychological research has told us about virtual relationships in social
media (16 marks)
In virtual relationships, self disclosure (revealing personal, intimate information about
oneself), happens differently compared to face-to-face (FtF) relationships. The reduced cues
theory, proposed by Sproull and Kessler (1986), suggests computer-mediated-
communication (CMC) relationships are less effective than FtF relationships, as they lack
cues, e.g. physical appearance, facial expressions and tone of voice. Leading to
deindividuation as it reduces the sense of personal identity lowering personal standards of
behaviour. Therefore virtual relationships are more likely to include impersonal, blunt and
possibly aggressive communication, which results in a reluctance to self-disclose. In
contrast, The Hyperpersonal model, proposed by Walther (1996,2011) argues virtual
relationships can be more personal and involve greater self disclosure than FtF
relationships. It suggests self-disclosure can happen more quickly and easier because each
person has time to manipulate their image, by controlling what they disclose and the cues
they send -selective self presentation. It is easier to manipulate self-disclosure as one can
present themselves in a positive idealised way, increasing the intensity of the relationship.
Anonymity may also accelerate self-disclosure (Bargh et al 2002) as people feel less
accountable and embarrassed for their behaviour so tend to disclose more to strangers as
there are less consequences.
Another difference between virtual and FtF relationships is in virtual relationships there is an
absence of gating. Communicating through the internet removes a number of factors acting
as barriers that could interfere with the development of the relationship and stop interactions
in FtF encounters. E.g. Barriers may include appearance, mannerisms, age, ethnicity,
speech defects limiting potential relationships. However without these barriers individuals
can present identities they are unable to in FtF interactions, giving people the ability to
project a more socially desirable self than ‘offline identity’. E.g. If someone with a stutter met
someone FtF, this may become a gate and interfere in the relationship development; online
this gate would be absent therefore wouldn’t hinder the relationship blossoming. Even when
the stutter is discovered later, it's rare that it would decrease the already-developed
attraction, due to the feeling of intimacy brought by more open self disclosure.
A strength of the Hyperpersonal model is its mass of research support summarised by
Whitty and Joinson. They say that questions in online discussions tend to be more direct,
probing and intimate. This boldness must be explained by the annoying factor mentioned by
Bargh et al-when people don’t know your true identity it’s easy to say some things because
you don’t feel accountable. This is different to FtF interactions as they are hedged around
small talk, as people would feel too uncomfortable;r and limited to be so intimate and direct
straight away. These findings support that we self-disclose more online, in a more direct
manner than FtF relationships.
There are issues with the reduced cues theory, there is a lack of research evidence to
support that low levels of self-disclosure online is due to absence of cues. Tidwell and
Walther (1995) argue that non-verbal cues aren’t absent, they are just different, e,g, time
taken to respond, emoticons and emojis are effective substitutes for cues like facial
expressions. Showing computer mediated and FtF interactions can be equally personal and
cued. Suggesting the hyperpersonal model is a more accurate explanation of self disclosure
in virtual relationships.
The effects of gating are supported by Mckenna and Bargh who found that lonely and
anxious people were more able to express themselves more in computer mediated
media (16 marks)
In virtual relationships, self disclosure (revealing personal, intimate information about
oneself), happens differently compared to face-to-face (FtF) relationships. The reduced cues
theory, proposed by Sproull and Kessler (1986), suggests computer-mediated-
communication (CMC) relationships are less effective than FtF relationships, as they lack
cues, e.g. physical appearance, facial expressions and tone of voice. Leading to
deindividuation as it reduces the sense of personal identity lowering personal standards of
behaviour. Therefore virtual relationships are more likely to include impersonal, blunt and
possibly aggressive communication, which results in a reluctance to self-disclose. In
contrast, The Hyperpersonal model, proposed by Walther (1996,2011) argues virtual
relationships can be more personal and involve greater self disclosure than FtF
relationships. It suggests self-disclosure can happen more quickly and easier because each
person has time to manipulate their image, by controlling what they disclose and the cues
they send -selective self presentation. It is easier to manipulate self-disclosure as one can
present themselves in a positive idealised way, increasing the intensity of the relationship.
Anonymity may also accelerate self-disclosure (Bargh et al 2002) as people feel less
accountable and embarrassed for their behaviour so tend to disclose more to strangers as
there are less consequences.
Another difference between virtual and FtF relationships is in virtual relationships there is an
absence of gating. Communicating through the internet removes a number of factors acting
as barriers that could interfere with the development of the relationship and stop interactions
in FtF encounters. E.g. Barriers may include appearance, mannerisms, age, ethnicity,
speech defects limiting potential relationships. However without these barriers individuals
can present identities they are unable to in FtF interactions, giving people the ability to
project a more socially desirable self than ‘offline identity’. E.g. If someone with a stutter met
someone FtF, this may become a gate and interfere in the relationship development; online
this gate would be absent therefore wouldn’t hinder the relationship blossoming. Even when
the stutter is discovered later, it's rare that it would decrease the already-developed
attraction, due to the feeling of intimacy brought by more open self disclosure.
A strength of the Hyperpersonal model is its mass of research support summarised by
Whitty and Joinson. They say that questions in online discussions tend to be more direct,
probing and intimate. This boldness must be explained by the annoying factor mentioned by
Bargh et al-when people don’t know your true identity it’s easy to say some things because
you don’t feel accountable. This is different to FtF interactions as they are hedged around
small talk, as people would feel too uncomfortable;r and limited to be so intimate and direct
straight away. These findings support that we self-disclose more online, in a more direct
manner than FtF relationships.
There are issues with the reduced cues theory, there is a lack of research evidence to
support that low levels of self-disclosure online is due to absence of cues. Tidwell and
Walther (1995) argue that non-verbal cues aren’t absent, they are just different, e,g, time
taken to respond, emoticons and emojis are effective substitutes for cues like facial
expressions. Showing computer mediated and FtF interactions can be equally personal and
cued. Suggesting the hyperpersonal model is a more accurate explanation of self disclosure
in virtual relationships.
The effects of gating are supported by Mckenna and Bargh who found that lonely and
anxious people were more able to express themselves more in computer mediated
