Marjolijn L. Antheunis

Interactive Uncertainty Reduction Strategies and Verbal Affection in Computer-Mediated Communication

The goal of this study was to investigate the language-based strategies that computer-mediated communication (CMC) users employ to reduce uncertainty in the absence of nonverbal cues. Specifically, this study investigated the prevalence of three interactive uncertainty reduction strategies (i.e., self-disclosure, question asking, and question/disclosure intimacy) in reduced-cue settings. Moreover, this study investigated whether these uncertainty reduction strategies increased the verbal statements of affection in CMC. Eighty-one unacquainted cross-sex dyads were randomly assigned to three experimental conditions: face-to-face, visual CMC supported by a webcam, or text-only CMC. Content analysis of the verbal communication revealed that text-only CMC interactants made a greater proportion of affection statements than face-to-face interactants. Proportions of question asking and question/disclosure intimacy were higher in both CMC conditions than in the face-to-face condition, but only question asking mediated the relationship between CMC and verbal statements of affection. No differences in question asking, question/disclosure intimacy, and verbal statements of affection were observed between the text-only CMC condition and the visual CMC condition. This study provided additional support for social information processing theory by specifying the role of different language-based strategies that may be employed online.

The quality of online, offline, and mixed-mode friendships among users of a social networking site

The first aim of this study was to compare the quality of online, offline, and mixed-mode friendships (i.e., friendships that originate online and extend to offline settings) among users of a social networking site. The second aim was to investigate the relative contribution of proximity, perceived similarity, and social attraction to the quality of each of the three types of friendships. We surveyed 2,188 members of a Dutch social networking site. Results showed that the quality of all three types of friendships increased over time. The differences in quality between online and offline friendships remained significant over time, but those between mixed-mode and offline friendships disappeared. Proximity did not affect the quality of any of the three types of friendships. Perceived similarity was the most important predictor of online friendships, whereas social attraction was the most important predictor of mixed-mode and offline friendships. Our results are discussed in the light of both interpersonal and computer-mediated communication theories.

Enhancing the effects of social network site marketing campaigns: if you want consumers to like you, ask them about themselves

This study assesses the consequences of consumers’ self-disclosing of identification information in interactive advertising campaigns on social network sites (SNSs), for brand, product and campaign responses. Building on social response and brand relationship theory, these effects are predicted and tested in an experiment in which consumers did or did not provide personal information to the brand by interacting with an SNS campaign, identifying consumer concern about disclosing personal information as a moderator. The results demonstrate that consumers’ self-disclosure to the brand elicits favourable attitudinal and behavioural consumer responses, especially for individuals who have relatively low online privacy concerns in the SNS context.

The Role of Social Networking Sites in Early Adolescents’ Social Lives

The aim of this study was to examine the role of social networking sites (SNSs) in early adolescents’ social lives. First, we investigated the relation between SNS use and several aspects of early adolescents’ social lives (i.e., friendship quality, bridging social capital, and bonding social capital). Second, we examined whether there are differences between SNS users and nonusers in terms of their social lives. Drawing on a survey among 3,068 early adolescents, results showed positive relations between SNS use and friendship quality, bridging social capital, and bonding social capital. Furthermore, we found positive effects of SNS membership on these social indicators. In sum, even though concerns have been voiced about a possible negative impact of SNS use on adolescents’ social lives, we found no evidence of this. Results of this study show that the role of SNSs in early adolescents’ social lives is positive at least concerning friendship quality, bridging social capital, and bonding social capital.

The effect of mobile messaging during a conversation on impression formation and interaction quality

This paper presents two experimental studies investigating the impact of mobile messaging during an offline conversation on relational outcomes. A first study examined the impact on impression formation. A 3ź×ź1 experiment revealed that phone users were perceived as significantly less polite and attentive, and that self-initiated messaging behavior led to more negative impression formation than messaging behavior in response to a notification. A second study examined the impact on perceived conversation quality and social attraction. A 2ź×ź2 experiment revealed that perceived conversation quality was negatively affected by co-present mobile messaging behavior, while social attraction was not. Whether persons were acquainted or not with the phone user did not moderate this relationship. We examined whether co-present texting impacts negatively on relational outcomes.In experiment 1, co-present texters were perceived as less polite and attentive.In experiment 2, co-present texting caused perceptions of lower conversation quality.Experiment 2 found no negative impact on social attraction.Concerns over the harmful effect of co-present phone use appear warranted.

Enhancing the effects of social network site marketing campaigns

This study assesses the consequences of consumers’ self-disclosing of identification information in interactive advertising campaigns on social network sites (SNSs), for brand, product and campaign responses. Building on social response and brand relationship theory, these effects are predicted and tested in an experiment in which consumers did or did not provide personal information to the brand by interacting with an SNS campaign, identifying consumer concern about disclosing personal information as a moderator. The results demonstrate that consumers’ self-disclosure to the brand elicits favourable attitudinal and behavioural consumer responses, especially for individuals who have relatively low online privacy concerns in the SNS context.

Like or dislike? Adolescents’ responses to personalized social network site advertising

ABSTRACT Increasingly, personal data posted by users of social network sites (SNSs) can be used to personalize advertising. The present study investigates how adolescents respond to personalized ads in terms of attitude toward the ad, brand engagement and intention to forward, and whether privacy concerns moderate their responses. According to pretest results, a medium level of personalization was expected to be optimal in terms of advertising effectiveness. A within-subjects experiment involving 40 participants aged 14–18 years was performed. Three conditions of personalized advertising were designed with, respectively, low, medium, and high levels of personalization. The study found that the highest personalization condition generated the most positive response and that privacy concerns did not moderate the effects of personalization. The privacy paradox is discussed as an alternative explanation, along with other implications of the results.

Personal, Editable and Always Accessible : An Affordance Approach to the Relationship Between Adolescents' Mobile Messaging Behavior and Their Friendship Quality

This study takes a perceived affordance approach to explain how differences in teenagers’ mobile messaging behavior associate with indicators of friendship maintenance behavior. Based on a survey among 1943 teenagers, a structural equation model was tested in which their appreciation of three main affordances of mobile messaging predicted the companionship and support that they derive from their friends through their instrumental and expressive mobile messaging behavior. The model fitted the data well: teenagers’ appreciation for anytime–anyplace connectivity, private communication, and control over message content explained to what extent they use mobile messaging to micro-coordinate, to chitchat with friends, and to intimately self-disclose, thereby indirectly explaining the companionship and support that teens derive from friends. This finding supports the notion that inherent characteristics of technology play a role in contemporary relationship management by driving social uses of the technology.

The Effect of Screen-to-Screen Versus Face-to-Face Consultation on Doctor-Patient Communication: An Experimental Study with Simulated Patients

Background Despite the emergence of Web-based patient-provider contact, it is still unclear how the quality of Web-based doctor-patient interactions differs from face-to-face interactions. Objective This study aimed to examine (1) the impact of a consultation medium on doctors’ and patients’ communicative behavior in terms of information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and shared decision making and (2) the mediating role of doctors’ and patients’ communicative behavior on satisfaction with both types of consultation medium. Methods Doctor-patient consultations on pelvic organ prolapse were simulated, both in a face-to-face and in a screen-to-screen (video) setting. Twelve medical interns and 6 simulated patients prepared 4 different written scenarios and were randomized to perform a total of 48 consultations. Effects of the consultations were measured by questionnaires that participants filled out directly after the consultation. Results With respect to patient-related outcomes, satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making showed no significant differences between face-to-face and screen-to-screen consultations. Patients’ attitude toward Web-based communication (b=−.249, P=.02 and patients’ perceived time and attention (b=.271, P=.03) significantly predicted patients’ perceived interpersonal relationship building. Patients’ perceived shared decision making was positively related to their satisfaction with the consultation (b=.254, P=.005). Overall, patients experienced significantly greater shared decision making with a female doctor (mean 4.21, SD 0.49) than with a male doctor (mean 3.66 [SD 0.73]; b=.401, P=.009). Doctor-related outcomes showed no significant differences in satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making between the conditions. There was a positive relationship between perceived information exchange and doctors’ satisfaction with the consultation (b=.533, P<.001). Furthermore, doctors’ perceived interpersonal relationship building was positively related to doctors’ satisfaction with the consultation (b=.331, P=.003). Conclusions In this study, the quality of doctor-patient communication, as indicated by information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and shared decision making, did not differ significantly between Web-based and face-to-face consultations. Doctors and simulated patients were equally satisfied with both types of consultation medium, and no differences were found in the manner in which participants perceived communicative behavior during these consultations. The findings suggest that worries about a negative impact of Web-based video consultation on the quality of patient-provider consultations seem unwarranted as they offer the same interaction quality and satisfaction level as regular face-to-face consultations.

Teasing apart the effect of visibility and physical co-presence to examine the effect of CMC on interpersonal attraction

This study analyzed the possible difference in interpersonal attraction between communicators in cue-rich computer-mediated communication (CMC) and face-to-face (FtF) communication. The first aim was to determine whether physical co-presence and visibility may account for differences in interpersonal attraction between interlocutors in CMC and FtF communication. The second aim was to assess social presence and identifiability as underlying mechanisms in the relation between communication medium and interpersonal attraction. An experiment among 105 unacquainted cross-sex dyads with a 2 (visible/invisible)?×?2 (physical co-present/physically not co-present) between-subjects design, revealed that while visibility had a direct negative effect on interpersonal attraction, it positively influenced attraction through social presence and identifiability. In addition, people who were physically co-present were more attracted towards each other because they felt more social presence. Finally, both co-present and visible interactants were less attracted towards each other. This study provides support for social presence theory by revealing that both physical co-presence and visibility enhance social presence. In addition, our results have implications for theory and research regarding the effect of cue-rich CMC on interpersonal attraction.