This study extends previous research into the impact of Internet technologies on romantic relationship development. Since the early 1990s, the rapid advancement of technology has had significant sociological impacts on the way that individuals initiate and develop relationships with one another. Social and economic trends are also having an impact on the way that people use online technologies and their reasons for doing so. In this project, I explore how online technologies have impacted relationship formation and maintenance for both men and women.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Annotated Bibliography
Arvidsson, Adam. “Quality singles: Internet dating and the work of fantasy.” New Media Society. (2006): Vol. 8, 671-690.
This article is centered around a case study of the worldwide dating site Match.com. Research showed that Internet dating appears to be a comparatively efficient venue for finding a partner and that it seems that Match.com members in particular, belong disproportionately to the urban, college-educated individuals that make up the upper echelons of the new working class of the information economy. The article argues that internet dating seeks to guide the technologically enhanced communicative and emotional capacities of internet users to work in ways so that this produces economically valuable content. They argue that online dating provides a good illustration of how the information economy actively incorporates communicative action as a form of immaterial labor.
Barrakat, Jo & Henry-Waring, Milsom S. “Getting in on(line): Sociological perspectives on e-dating” Journal of Sociology (2008): Vol. 44,149-165.
In this study, researchers sought to enhance their knowledge of if and how, online technologies mediate and sustain intimate connections and to better understand the nature of intimacy in this global era. They found that while online technologies appear to provide new opportunities for intimate connections that cut across existing social networks, they simultaneously reinforce traditional relationship formation within particular sub-cultural, ethno-religious and sexual identity groups. They also considered whether online dating technologies transform the nature of intimacy and researched whether these technologies are simply a medium for interaction or a fundamental shaper of the way users view intimacy and/or dating norms.
Ellison, Nicole, Heino, Rebecca and Gibbs, Jennifer. “Managing Impressions Online: Self- Presentation Processes in the Online Dating Environment.” Journal of Computer- Mediated Communication. (2006): 11, 415-441.
This study offers insight into the complicated way in which “honesty” is enacted online. These scholars were interested in self-presentation strategies among online dating participants and how participants manage their online presentation of self in order to find a romantic partner. Their qualitative data suggested that participants attended to small cues online and enacted their desire to present an authentic sense of self by creating a profile that reflected their “ideal self,” and attempting to establish the truth of their identity claims.
Gibbs, Jennifer L, Lai, Chih-Hui and Ellison, Nicole B. “First Comes Love, Then Comes Google: An Investigation of Communication Privacy Management Strategies and Self- Disclosure in Online Dating” International Communication Association Conference. (2009): Chicago, IL.
In this study, researchers investigated the relationship between privacy management behaviors and self-disclosure among online daters. In regards to self-disclosure the individual’s strategies were predicted by online dating concerns such as personal security, misrepresentation and recognition. Online dating participants negotiated competing needs to both reveal and conceal their identities as they strove to preserve their privacy yet provide enough personal data to ensure their profile was noticed by others. They also examine the communication strategies online dating participants use to seek information about others and verify the credibility of this information and how these strategies relate to self-disclosure behavior as individuals manage boundaries between public and private information in the initial stages of relationship formation.
Gracyalny, Monica. “The Co-creation of Identity and Trust in Online Dating: An Analysis of Match.com.” National Communication Association. (2007): 1, 1-20.
This scholarly article addresses how people present themselves to potential romantic partners online and the effects of these virtual representations on user satisfaction. Despite extensive research on the individual's role in constructing an online persona, few studies have examined the important role that online dating services play in this process. The researchers analyzed an online dating website, Match.com, to explain how the Internet dating industry simultaneously supports both identity creation and the development of trust online.
Hardey, Michael. “Mediated Relationships.” Information, Communication and Society. (2004): 7, 207-222.
This paper is about the Internet as a new mode of meeting people and forming relationships. The rapidly growing number of Internet dating resources constitute a domain where people are entering into particular forms of interactions that are characterized by interactional rules that facilitate the building of trust between users. Authenticity and 'emotional communication' is central to the 'pure relationships' of our late modern era. It is therefore appropriate that information and communication technologies are supplementing or replacing traditional routes to potentially romantic encounters that have in the past been mediated by some sort of matchmaker.
Malta, Sue. “Love Actually! Older Adults and their Romantic Internet Relationships.” Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and Society. (2007): Vol. 5, 84-102.
The findings of this study showed that a significant number of the older adult participants enjoyed flirting online with others and some were also involved in extra-dyadic relationships; indicating that sex and intimacy outside of primary, committed relationships was just as compelling an activity for these older adults as for younger Internet users. These results contradict the popular tradition of equating sex, love and romance solely with youth.
Pauley, Perry M. and Emmers-Sommer, Tara M. “The Impact of Internet Technologies on Primary and Secondary Romantic Relationship Development.” Communication Studies. (2007): 58, 411-427.
These scholars were interested in the impact that changes in Internet-based technologies have on romantic relationships that have been developed exclusively online. In their study, participants who used the Internet to maintain a secondary romantic relationship reported higher levels of relational certainty and greater expectations of future interaction with their online partner than participants involved exclusively in online relationships.
Toohey, Raiza A. “Wired valentines and webs of love: An examination of people’s attitudes and their intentions to use the Net to form romantic relationships.” Diss. Georgia State University, 2007.
This scholarly article focused on college student’s attitudes toward online romantic relationships and their intentions to develop this type of relationship. Borrowing elements from both social cognitive theory and the theory of reasoned action, this study introduced a model that combined perceptions of indirect past experiences, beliefs, attitudes and social norms and associations with people’s intentions to form romantic relationships over the Internet. Researchers hypothesized that both attitudes and social norms would predict people’s intentions to form or develop romantic relationships over the Internet and if individuals did not have direct experience, other sources of indirect experiences with online romantic relationships would relate to people’s beliefs about online relationships and their perceptions of what significant others think.
Tong, Stephanie and Walther, Joseph. “Sorry, You're Just Not My Type: Romantic Rejection in Computer-Mediated Communication.” International Communication Association. (2009): 1-41.
This research examined how certain features of online match-finding systems alter communication in regards to the rejection of dating requests. Rejecting romantic requests present multiple conversational goals and politeness challenges, and this study analyzed the types of linguistic strategies employed in date refusals. They also discuss how online daters take advantage of certain features provided by dating website messaging services which allow new ways for romantic refusals that were not previously available in face-to-face communication or earlier forms of computer-mediated communication.
Data, Methods, and Ethics
My research was conducted between February 3rd, 2010 through February 28th, 2010 from Santa Clara, California. In order to obtain my research, I created my own user account on two dating sites, Lavalife.com and EHarmony.com, and conducted interviews asynchronously online via an emailed qualitative questionnaire. The research included a questionnaire comprised of ten items that was administered to a sample group, which consisted of six females and four males who were registered, active users of at least one or more online dating site. The sample included users ranging from age 25 to 48 from various parts of the Southern California. The majority of the participants identified themselves as heterosexual with one person identifying as bisexual. Questions sought to identify user’s attitudes towards relationships initiated online and their own personal experiences with online dating. Participants also answered questions regarding age, gender, race, and relationship status which was determined by a single question asking participants whether they were single and not dating anyone, single but casually dating; engaged; or married. I was also interested in the motivations for online dating and the ways in which respondents represented themselves online. Data from the questionnaire were analyzed thematically to identify the most dominant interpretations of the online dating experience among my participants.
My Questionnaire
1). Have you ever used a dating site? If so what motivated you? If not, please explain?
2). Are you registered on more than one dating site? If so which other sites do you use? Do they require a subscription fee?
3). What are you looking for in a relationship online? Do you have any rules or requirements that the other person must fulfill?
4). What are the benefits of dating online in comparison to traditional dating? What are the downsides?
5). Do you feel that you are willing to disclose more information online than in-person?
6). In your opinion, what is the difference between communication online vs. face-to-face? Name some pros and cons.
7). Do you feel that there is a negative stigma attached to online dating? Would you be judged by others (friends, family members, etc) for using this unconventional method of dating, if so why?
8). Do you worry about sexual predators, cyber-stalking or identity theft when you engage in the use of certain online dating sites? Why or why not?
9). Are there any rules of etiquette that you have noticed so far? If so, can you describe them and give your own interpretation of why they are in place?
10). Overall, do you prefer traditional dating in the real world or would you rather connect with romantic partners online?
Ethics:
All names and identifiers have been removed to protect anonymity. Informed consent was obtained from all questionnaire respondents.
Analysis
Despite the growing popularity of forming relationships online, there has been widespread public discourse about the dangers of meeting strangers online and the potential threats of sexual predators, cyber-stalking or identity theft. Results from the surveyed participants suggested that users generally perceive online dating environments to be ‘safer’ than traditional mating venues because they are anonymous this means that there is a security factor involved in the decision to go online in search of relationships with the opposite sex. While there are some dangers involved in online relationships, most of the respondents indicated that the Internet has helped them to improve and maintain personal relationships and friendships, and to meet new people. The majority of the research participants identified geographic proximity as an influencing factor in their selection of prospective dates, as well as in their preferred choice of online dating site.
Although two of our respondents had managed long-distance relationships online for short periods of time, the majority of the respondents who spoke about physical proximity issues suggested there is little point to meeting people who live a long distance away if your purpose is to form a face-to-face relationship. The importance of physical proximity between people who intend to form and sustain face-to-face relationships seems like an obvious concern. However, it is more important to note the extent to which online technologies provide new sites facilitating social interaction in which users meet people with whom they would otherwise not come in to contact. A number of the respondents identified the freedom of meeting people outside of their own social networks as a major benefit of online dating. For example, one of my respondents, who was a 25-year-old single, straight male, highlighted this idea saying “It elevates you out of your social circle, and you’re sort of broadcast to a broad bunch of people, and if you’re fairly open-ended in your profile, and not so descriptive about what you do or don’t do, then you get the opportunity to meet lots of different people that you would never know other than that.”
Conclusion
Recent statistics revealing the number of new subscribers to dating websites seem to indicate that people may be starting to rely more on online methods of mate selection and courtship than on conventional methods such as bars, clubs, or family friends. “On average, the majority of the people who met their partners online have reported being engaged or married within one year” (Toohey, 14). The rapid proliferation of new media into realms of personal communication and the increased usage of the Internet have given rise to new and less conventional ways of meeting people and developing personal relationships. Nowadays, more and more people are meeting others online and building meaningful close relationships in cyberspace. The internet seems to open a new social space for communication and my results suggest that relationships developed online are healthy and a complement to face-to-face relationships. Not only do online technologies facilitate the formation of intimate connections but they also serve to advance the understanding of the nature of intimacy which has undergone many changes since the days of our parents and grandparents.
Multimedia Links
Lavalife
EHarmony
The Ashley Madison Agency
Lavalife
EHarmony
The Ashley Madison Agency
ABC News "Online Dating : eHarmony.com Secrets"
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