AO1

• What are the two major and contrasting theories regarding self disclosure in virtual relationships?


  Reduced cues theory and the hyperpersonal model
• Who proposed the reduced cues theory?

  Sproull and Kiesler
• What does the reduced cues theory suggest?

  Virtual relationships are less effective because they lack nonverbal cues like facial expressions and tone of voice
• Who proposed the hyperpersonal model?

  Walther
• What does the hyperpersonal model argue?

  Virtual relationships can be more personal and involve greater self disclosure than FtF ones. This is because virtual relationships can develop very quickly as self disclosure happens earlier and once established they are more intense and intimate
• What are the 2 key features of hyperpersonal self-discourse in virtual relationships?

  1. Selective self presentation: people control what they disclose and manipulate their image (hyper honest or hyper dishonest)
  2. Feedback reinforcement: others respond positively, reinforcing the sender’s presentation
• What is the ‘strangers on a train effect’ in online relationships?


  People disclose more personal information to strangers online due to anonymity (described by Bargh)
• People disclose more online because

  1. They would probably never see the person again
  2. The stranger could not report disclosures to the individual’s social group
• What is ‘absence of gating’?

  According to McKenna and Bargh, Face to face (FtF) relationships often fail to form because of obstacles such as physical unattractiveness or facial disfigurements that some people might find off-putting which interferes with the early development of a relationship. These ‘gates’ are absent in the virtual world allowing relationships to begin when they might not offline
• A key feature of virtual relationships is that most of these gates are absent. This means a virtual relationship can develop to the point where self-disclosure becomes more frequent and deeper. Therefore the relationship can ‘get off the ground‘‘ in a way that is less likely to happen face-to-face.
• Absence of gating works by refocusing attention on self disclosure and away from superficial and distracting features. In a virtual relationship, I am more interested in what you tell me than in what you look and sound like
• What is a benefit of the absence of gating?

  People can express their ‘true selves’ more freely than in FtF interactions
• What does reduced cues theory say about de-individuation?

  The lack of nonverbal cues reduces a person’s sense of identity, leading to disinhibition and more blunt or aggressive communication
• What is a drawback of the absence of gating?

  Allows people to deceive other s by changing certain attributes in ways that would be harder in FtF interactions