Evaluation ?

• Strength?


  There is biological evidence that human beings are MOTIVATED to self-disclose on social media
• What is the biological evidence that humans are motivated to self-disclose on social media?


  Tamir and Mitchell

  • used MRI scans on 2 brain regions that are associated with reward and they found that these areas were strongly activated when people were talking about themselves, and less so when talking about someone else
  • this suggests that the human tendency to share our personal experiences with others over social media may arise from the rewarding nature of self-disclosure
• Strength?


  Research into virtual relationships has led to practical applications for therapists working with individuals who lack in social skills

  • individuals who are socially inept can learn social skills useful for shaping social r'ships in the real world, building confidence before attempting to form FtF r'ships
• Weakness?


  Research into virtual r'ships can be seen as culturally biased in terms of its relevance to non-western r'ships
• weakness of virtual rship research - Cultural bias - research?


  Yum and Hara

  • found that american pps reported that disclosure in virtual r'ships was associated with more trust, while Korean pps reported greater disclosure to let less trust, which suggests that the effects of disclosure on virtual r'ships is mediated by cultural factors