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1 Running head: PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 1 Preserving Relationships With an Internet Connection Zachary Jones COMM 3050 Section 001 April 27, 2015

2 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 2 Preserving Relationships With an Internet Connection Introduction The communication within relationships is being redefined by a rise in Social Networking Sites (SNSs), and individuals are using these sites like never before. The development and maintenance of relationships can now occur online through computer mediated contexts. These sites reach hundreds of millions of users worldwide through the sharing of personal content daily with members of their social network (Bazarova, Taft, Choi, & Cosley, 2013). These SNSs are of interest due to the aid they give to the development and maintenance of relationships. Recently in academia, SNSs have drawn the attention of researchers, however, only few studies have empirically analyzed the process of relationship maintenance online (Craig & Wright, 2012). For that reason, this review examines the aspects of relational maintenance through SNS interactions in a topical scheme. Specifically, the literature review focuses on romantic relationships and non romantic relationships. In summation, an evaluation of the research presented and suggestions of future research is discussed. Literature Review Romantic Relationships Online According to Stewart, Dainton, and Goodboy (2014), motivation for the use of Facebook, a SNS that allows users to create an online profile and that currently has over one billion active monthly users (Facebook, 2015), has caused scholars to begin to analyze the effects on the maintenance of romantic relationships. In the existence of research today, three main issues of relationship maintenance emerge in romantic relationships. First, uncertainty among romantic relationships and the theoretical framework of Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT), satisfaction

3 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 3 as a variable of interest in the maintenance of romantic relationships, and finally, the use of the internet to maintain a secondary romantic relationship. It has been suggested that due to the lack of contextual cues (i.e., verbal cues, non verbal cues, or proxemics) in online spheres may create uncertainty when communicating in romantic partnerships. Therefore, this section is framed through the URT, authored by Charles Berger (Stewart et al., 2014). Griffin, Ledbetter, and Sparks (2015) define uncertainty reduction as an increased knowledge of what kind of person another is, which provides an improved forecast of how a future interaction will turn out (p. 110). URT postulates that the main goal for relationship maintenance is to utilize communicative behaviors to reduce uncertainty (Stewart et al.). According to Griffin et al., uncertainty is positively correlated with self disclosure and information seeking. Pauley and Emmers Sommer (2007) and Stewart et al. both suggest that URT was an appropriate theoretical frame for understanding and predicting the role of Facebook in romantic relationships. Stewart et al. (2014) suggest two significant functions when predicting the association between relationship uncertainty and Facebook maintenance behaviors. First, when romantic partners perceived mutual (shared) and definitional (how they define publicly their relationship) uncertainty they used Facebook monitoring to maintain their relationship. The second function revealed that when romantic partners lack future (relationship outcome) and definitional uncertainty, they use more Facebook assurances and openness to maintain their relationship. Similarly, the findings of Pauley et al. (2007) resulted in a positive correlation between future interactions and uncertainty reduction in the relationship. Stewart et al. remarks that these highlight how Facebook may contribute to relational uncertainty or be utilized for uncertainty

4 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 4 management [and that] dating couples who rely on SNSs such as Facebook should know that their online behavior can simultaneously instigate and resolve negative relational outcomes such as uncertainty, jealousy, and dissatisfaction (p. 21, 23). Relational uncertainty behaviors are performed on SNSs in order to sustain preferred relationship characteristics such as satisfaction (Stewart et al.). Satisfaction is an important component of maintaining romantic relationships online. A positive correlation was found when Stewart et al. (2014) quantitatively tested relational maintenance typology: positivity and assurances with relational satisfaction on Facebook. Positivity and assurances are relational maintenance strategies that were developed by Stafford and Canary (1991), where positivity demonstrates the reference to enjoyable and supportive behaviors in relational interactions and assurances refers to the signals used by partners to communicate their commitment. This research confirms previous findings and provides some degree of construct validity to these Facebook measures (Stewart et al.). Although Pauley et al. (2007) did not allude to relational satisfaction in SNS environments they did suggest that online media that comes closest to face to face communication might produce satisfactory relational outcomes in terms of relational intimacy and self disclosure through interactive communication. One other development in online romantic relationships is the issue of online extradyadic relationships, or the involvement with a second romantic partner, that can be discrete compared to face to face relationships. According to Pauley et al. (2007) there has been relatively little literature published on secondary online romantic relationships. Pauley et al. found that people using the internet to have a secondary relationship reported using as the primary correspondence as it is much easier to conceal, is ubiquitous, and it is not uncommon for people

5 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 5 to have multiple accounts. Those who engage in secondary romantic relationships indicate having a very high level of familiarity and certainty with their online partner over those that had exclusively singular online relationships (Pauley et al.). These findings were unexpected and indicate that if individuals are dissatisfied in their face to face relationships, people turn to the internet and idealize projections of a concerned online partner (Pauley et al.). These findings on romantic relationships add to our understanding, but Stewart et al. (2014) questions the assumption as to whether Facebook functions as a channel for the maintenance of romantic relationships to the same extent as it might contribute to the maintenance of friendships or distance relationships (p. 24). Non Romantic Relationships Online The topic of online non romantic relationship maintenance is complex and extensive as SNSs have become more ubiquitous and as audiences have become wide ranging. This review classifies non romantic relationships as friends, family, neighbors, co workers, and acquaintances. This review juxtaposes three key themes encompassing: self presentational management, the relationship between user s engagement and social capital, and interpersonal perceptions, specifically similarity, as components of the relational maintenance process. In the maintenance of non romantic relationships self presentation is an important characteristic in SNSs as they create varying circumstances and vast audiences. The SNS Facebook provides the opportunity for self expression and mass access of personal content through three main modalities: status updates, wall posts, and private messages (Bazarova et al., 2013). Bazarova et al. posits that a context collapse of various audiences into one creates a challenge for balancing self presentational strategies. Bazarova et al. note that self presentational

6 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 6 concerns affect language style around emotionality and we can explore positive and negative emotions to reveal how people utilize SNSs when dealing with multiple audiences. Through an analysis of language style, the findings of Bazarova et al. signify that there was not a significant difference in positive emotion words overall but that negative emotion words appeared less in status updates, or as Bazarova et al. adopt the statement public displays (p. 133). These findings indicate that people strategically adapt their language style to different situations and audiences for managing self presentation (Bazarova et al.). The utilization of SNSs to maintain social relationships has many results and one that is fixed within interactions is the access of social resources, or social capital (Ellison, Vitak, Gray, & Lampe, 2014). In measuring the degree of perceived social capital, Ellison et al. studies consider the perceived relational closeness that users are able to distinguish through the total number of Facebook friends, and the number of actual friends. Further, the findings of Ellison et al. suggest a positive relationship between the greater the user s engagement with a higher perceived social capital, and concluding that those who have fewer actual friends had the greatest gains in social capital. Most importantly, Ellison et al. highlight the importance of managing and maintaining one s network is not simply through connection alone, but rather is developed through small but meaningful effort on the part of users as they engage in relationship maintenance behaviors (p. 868). There are numerous components in the relational maintenance process influenced by interpersonal perceptions. Similarity, as a interpersonal perception, is a key motivating factor in terms of increasing the likelihood that a relationship will continue in online and face to face settings (Craig et al., 2012). According to Craig et al., the attitude of similarity on Facebook is a

7 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 7 predictor of social attraction and these factors influence self disclosure, which in turn lead to predictability and interdependence. These connected components are important outcomes in terms of maintaining relationships. Craig et al. also suggests that many Facebook users compliment their Facebook communications with face to face interactions to help clarify misunderstandings or employ other relational maintenance strategies. Conclusion This review has shown the scope of romantic and non romantic relationship maintenance through SNS interactions. The studies involved only circulated around quantitative methodology alluding to the strict limitations of numerical values in representing behaviors, perceptions, and outcomes. Although the methodology was limited, the research involved created new avenues of research as there are relatively few studies that have empirically examined the process of relational development/maintenance (Craig et al., 2012, p. 119) using SNSs as a new mediator. Further implications of the presented research are found in the theoretical framework used, or the lack thereof. URT was the dominant theoretical approach presented in the maintenance of romantic relationship studies and no theoretical framework was present as a dominant approach in the several non romantic relationship maintenance studies. Further research should be done to investigate different theoretical approaches in online media contexts. Griffin et al. (2015) explain common threads, or recurring principles, that occur in multiple theories each with a significant feature. One such thread is audience adaptation that Griffin et al. define as the strategic creation or adjustment of a message in light of the audience characteristics and specific setting (p. 476). If we recall in the work of Bazarova et al. (2013), previously in this review, that their findings indicate that people strategically adapt their

8 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 8 language style to different situations and audiences for managing self presentation. In comparison between these findings and audience adaptation, several theories would apply and give a greater understanding to the study and field of communication. The theories of dramatism, elaboration likelihood model, and cognitive dissonance theory are just some of the theories that might shed more light on the findings of Bazarova et al. (Griffin et al.). With the rise and advancements of SNSs in modern society now is the time to understand how SNSs affect relationships.

9 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 9 References Bazarova, N. N., Taft, J. G., Choi, Y. H., & Cosley, D. (2013). Managing impressions and relationships on facebook: Self presentational and relational concerns revealed through the analysis of language style. Journal Of Language & Social Psychology, 32 (2), doi: / x Craig, E., & Wright, K. B. (2012). Computer mediated relational development and maintenance on facebook. Communication Research Reports, 29 (2), doi: / Ellison, N. B., Vitak, J., Gray, R., & Lampe, C. (2014). Cultivating social resources on social network sites: Facebook relationship maintenance behaviors and their role in social capital processes. Journal Of Computer Mediated Communication, 19 (4), doi: /jcc Facebook.com. (2015). Newsroom: Key facts. Retrieved from Griffin, E., Ledbetter, A., & Sparks, G. (2015). A first look at communication theory (9th ed.). New York, NY, US: McGraw Hill. Pauley, P. M., & Emmers Sommer, T. M. (2007). The impact of internet technologies on primary and secondary romantic relationship development. Communication Studies, 58 (4), doi: / Stafford, L., & Canary, D. J. (1991). Maintenance strategies and romantic relationship type, gender and relational characteristics. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 8, doi: /

10 PRESERVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH AN INTERNET CONNECTION 10 Stewart, M. C., Dainton, M., & Goodboy, A. K. (2014). Maintaining relationships on facebook: Associations with uncertainty, jealousy, and satisfaction. Communication Reports, 27 (1), doi: /

A First Look at Communication Theory

9 Uncertainty Reduction Theory of Charles Berger A First Look at Communication Theory 9 th edition Em Griffin Andrew Ledbetter Glenn Sparks Uncertainty Reduction: To Predict and Explain Slide 2 Berger