Social Penetration

• Irwin Altman


  Research Psychologist at the Naval Medical Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, from 1962 to 1969, explored interpersonal communication in isolated groups
• Dalmas Taylor (1968): 'Defined the process of social penetration as "the reciprocal behaviors that occur between individuals in the development of an interpersonal relationship"'
• Social penetration theory


  Its main principle is that as relationships last for an increasing period, the people involved will gradually become more intimate with each other
• Onion Theory


  Personality is multi-layered; our public selves are the outside layer, and our personal selves are the core
• Depth


  Refers to how personal, or deep, our communication with others is, we usually start with small talk to start the process of relationship building
• Breadth


  Is the number of topics a person feels comfortable discussing in a relationship, surface-level conversations about a lot of different topics, covering a wider range of topics = A better chance of finding common ground
• Norm of Reciprocity


  When a person discloses something, the responder is obligated to disclose something at the same level of intimacy to maintain the norm or equity
• Stages of Social Penetration Theory

  • Orientation Stage
  • Exploratory Affective Stage
  • Affective Exchange
  • Stable Exchange
  • De-penetration
• Orientation Stage


  People are cautious and careful when disclosing information, strangers exchange only impersonal information and are very cautious in their interactions
• Exploratory Affective Stage


  Individuals begin to trust each other a little more than they have in the past, people share details beyond the most superficial information and use less caution when self‐disclosing, there may be an increase in the breadth of topics discussed, but these topics still generally reveal the public self
• Affective Exchange


  Information from the more intermediate layers is shared and interactions are increasingly casual, people likely reveal some information about the private self or more intimate information, it involves open communication between individuals, and these relationships often include close friends as well as romantic or platonic partners
• Stable Exchange


  Characterized by openness, breadth, and depth across conversation topics, characterized by honesty and intimacy, a high degree of spontaneity, and open expression of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
• De-penetration


  Regression in the status of a social relationship, when the relationship's costs exceed its benefits there may be a withdrawal of information, ultimately leading to the end of the relationship
• Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC)


  Any form of communication between two or more individuals mediated by interconnected computers, includes synchronous (instant messages, video conferencing) and asynchronous (text messages, email) forms
• Computer-Mediated Social Penetration


  Online communication seems to follow a different set of rules, personal information can be disclosed immediately and without the risk of excessive intimacy, online relationships are often more intimate than those with partners who are physically together
• According to the social penetration theory (SPT), interpersonal communication levels in relationships progress from relatively shallow and non-intimate to deeper and more intimate as the relationship grows
• Self-disclosure: the deliberate sharing of personal details with others, such as motivations, desires, emotions, thoughts, and experiences—is the main way that relationships evolve according to SPT