Yair Amichai-Hamburger

Social network use and personality

Studies have shown a connection between the individual personality of the user and the way he or she behaves on line. Today many millions of people around the world are connected by being members of various Internet social networks. Ross et al. (2009) studied the connection between the personality of the individual users and their behavior on a social network. They based their study on the self-reports of users of Facebook, one of the most popular social networks, and measured five personality factors using the NEO-PI-R (Costa & McCrae, 1992) questionnaire. They found that while there was a connection between the personalities of surfers and their behavior on Facebook, it was not strong. This study is based on that of Ross et al. (2009), but in our study the self-reports of subjects, were replaced by more objective criteria, measurements of the user-information upload on Facebook. A strong connection was found between personality and Facebook behavior. Implications of the results are discussed.

Loneliness and Internet use

Abstract The Internet is becoming increasingly influential, but some observers have noted that heavy Internet users seem alienated from normal social contacts and may even cut these off as the Internet becomes the predominate social factor in their lives. Kraut, Patterson, Lundmark, Kiesler, Mukopadhyay, and Scherlis [American Psychologist 53 (1998) 65] carried out a longitudinal study from which they concluded that Internet use leads to loneliness among its users. However, their study did not take into account that the population of Internet users is not uniform and comprises many different personality types. People use the Internet in a variety of ways in keeping with their own personal preference. Therefore, the results of this interaction between personality and Internet use are likely to vary among different individuals and similarly the impact on user well-being will not be uniform. One of the personality characteristics that has been found to influence Internet use is that of extroversion and neuroticism [Hamburger & Ben-Artzi, Computers in Human Behavior 16 (2000) 441]. For this study, 89 participants completed questionnaires pertaining to their own Internet use and feelings of loneliness and extroversion and neuroticism. The results were compared to two models (a) the Kraut et al. (1998) model which argues that Internet use leads to loneliness (b) an alternative model which argues that it is those people who are already lonely who spend time on the Internet. A satisfactory goodness of fit was found for the alternative model. Building on these results, several different directions are suggested for continuing research in this field.

Internet and personality

The Internet is becoming increasingly influential in our daily lives. The author suggests that the personality of the net user is, for the most part, ignored by Internet designers who decide the future development of the Internet. The main reason for this is the heavy emphasis placed by designers on technological advancement to the detriment of user needs. The author argues that the only way to redress this balance is through a cooperative effort by Internet designers and psychologists working in the field of personality. The article examines the potential contribution of each of these professions toward promoting a genuinely interactive Internet, fully committed to being user-friendly and promoting user well-being.

E-empowerment

This article focuses on the concept of empowerment and the ways in which the Internet is being utilized as an empowering tool. This analysis ranges from the personal to the global levels and the consequences of that empowerment are also discussed. We propose a four-level model that serves to explain what we term E-empowerment and the effects that can be observed at each of the four levels, ranging from (1) the personal; (2) the interpersonal; (3) group; and (4) citizenship. The potential for future development of E-empowerment is also discussed.

The Positive Net

Abstract The Internet has been ascribed a negative reputation among scholars, for its potentially damaging influence on its users. These include addiction, depression, and loneliness. Although there are individuals who have been harmed through their use of the Internet, this is certainly not the whole story. The Internet provides a rich environment which includes significantly positive aspects as well as negative ones, and, when used appropriately, the Internet may greatly improve the quality of life for its users. This article will focus on the affirmative aspects of the net and on ways in which it may be used to enhance and increase surfers’ well-being, both collectively and individually. The topics discussed below are: (1) how the net experience can help socially inhibited people and those with a negative social stigma; (2) social support systems on the net; (3) how the net can improve intergroup relationships; (4) the ability of the net to solve the conflict between individuality and belonging to a group. It is suggested that understanding the positive aspects of the net will promote its potential to improve the psychological well-being of surfers.

The impact of Internet interactivity and need for closure on consumer preference

Abstract The Internet is used by an ever-increasing number of people worldwide. However, there is little understanding of the interaction between Internet technology and the behavior of different human personality types. This article focuses on the impact of the need for closure on the desired level of interactivity of a given Website. For this experiment, four commercialized Websites were created: (1) flat—with no hyperlinks and no time pressure; (2) flat with time pressure; (3) interactive with no time pressure; and (4) interactive with time pressure. All of the Websites contained identical information presented in different ways. The interaction between need for closure as a personality variable and as a situational variable and level of interactivity of the Website as a variable on consumer behavior was examined. A 2 (high need for closure vs. low need for closure)×2 (time pressure vs. no time pressure)×2 (interactive vs. non-interactive Website) between-subjects design was used. One hundred and eighty-two experienced Web surfers took part in the experiment, and were randomly assigned to one of the Websites. After surfing they completed a questionnaire about their level of satisfaction with the Website, their willingness to purchase the product offered there, and their wish to return to the Website. It was predicted that people with a high need for closure would prefer a Website with fewer hyperlinks, while people with a low need for closure would prefer a Website containing more hyperlinks. Results confirmed our predictions with regard to the conditions without time pressure. In contrast, when participants were under time pressure, the results were completely reversed: People with a low need for closure preferred the flat Website and those with a high need for closure preferred an interactive Website. The implications of the results on Website design are discussed.

The effects of need for cognition on Internet use

Abstract One of the undisputed roles of the Internet is information spreading. However, to this day there is little understanding of the interaction between the way in which information is provided on the Internet and the behavior of different human personality types. This article focuses on the impact of the need for cognition on the desired level of interactivity of a given Website and on web surfing in general. For this experiment, four commercialized Websites were used: (1) flat with no hyperlinks and no time pressure; (2) flat with time pressure; (3) interactive 1 with no time pressure; and (4) interactive with time pressure. All of the Websites contained identical information presented in different ways. The relations between need for cognition as a personality variable, time pressure as a situational stressor, the interactivity of the Web site, and several demographic variables were examined on Internet users’ behavior while surfing and on their preferences. One hundred and eighty-two experienced Web surfers took part in the experiment and were randomly assigned to one of the Websites. The number of hyperlinks used while surfing were counted by specially designed software. After surfing, the participants completed questionnaires regarding their satisfaction from the site, their willingness to return to the site, how persuasive the site was, and demographic data. It was predicted that people with high need for cognition would be more experienced in the Internet, use more hyperlinks, and stay longer in the site. People with a low need for cognition were predicted to prefer interactive over linear sites. Results support the preferences of people low in need for cognition of an interactive site. Other predictions were supported only partially. Implementations for Website design and further research are discussed.

Online Infidelity: Aspects of Dyadic Satisfaction, Self-Disclosure, and Narcissism

This study examined the hypothesis that the desire for an online infidelity act is formed on the basis of both personality-related factors and relationship-related factors, similarly to “real life” infidelity. Two hundred participants who maintain a relationship in “real life” were recruited through web advertisements, and filled in online questionnaires regarding their dyadic satisfaction (DAS-7), self-disclosure (JSDQ), narcissism (NPI), and their Internet relationship expectations (IRI). Results indicated that the predictors of Internet relationship expectations are the experience of having an Internet relationship, higher tendencies of manipulation and exhibitionism, lower self-disclosure and lower dyadic cohesion. However, dyadic and sexual satisfaction do not predict higher expectations of an Internet relationship, in contrast to real life relationships. These findings demonstrate the difference between online and “real life” infidelity and emphasize the need for further research on the link between personality dynamics and online infidelity. Additional theoretical and clinical implications deriving from the results are discussed.

The process of organizational communication: a model and field study

Research in computer-mediated communication has usually emphasized the cognitive over the social aspects of communication, the medium over the message, and the product of communication over the process. In contrast, this paper emphasizes three constructs of the communication process: goal-based communication strategies, message form and medium. We seek to balance cognitive and social communication strategies and to combine new and old measures of the message form (organization, formality and size). A field study in an academic institution examined the content of text-based communication delivered by letter, memo, fax and e-mail. As expected, people preferred certain message and medium attributes for certain strategies. These findings are further investigated using open-ended interviews. We conclude with examples of practical implications on designing and implementing computer-mediated communication.

The effects of Need for Cognition on Internet use revisited

The Internet is the biggest information carrier of our times. However, there is little understanding of the interaction between the different behaviors of the various Internet users, and the variety of ways in which information in the Internet should be presented. This work continues previous research [Amichai-Hamburger, Y., Kaynar, O., & Fine, A. (2005). The effects of need for cognition on Internet use. Unpublished manuscript.] that examined the preferences of participants with varying level of Need for Cognition (NFC) [Cacioppo, J. T., & Petty, R. E. (1982). The need for cognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 42, 116-131.] in internet sites varying in their interactivity. This article seeks to broaden the understanding of the behavior of people varying in NFC outside of research situations. We hypothesized that people high in NFC will use information services in the Internet relatively more than those with a low NFC. Furthermore, we hypothesized that people with a high NFC will perceive the informational characteristics of a website as the most important in the creation of a successful and convincing Internet site. Fifty experienced Web surfers filled out an Internet uses questionnaire in which they stated the amount of time they spend per week in 30 different Internet services. This data was later submitted to a Factor Analysis which revealed three major uses: professional, social and leisure. The participants filled out also a preferences questionnaire in which they stated their perceived importance of different characteristics in the creation of a successful and persuasive Internet site. Results support our hypothesis regarding the correlation between NFC and professional services use, and the perceived importance of information in creating a persuasive site. Several other findings are also discussed.