A03

• Looks as if virtual relationships can produce more self disclosure but it depends on a host of variables
• The virtual world could facilitate greater breadth, frequency and depth if SD, however there is not yet enough research to reach definitive conclsuions and what there is, is very mixed and inconsistent findings
• Some researchers have concluded that SD is reliably higher in CMC than FtF
• Some reviews of research observed that there's a body of experimental and anecdotal evidence indicating that CMC and general internet based behaviour can be characterised as containing higher levels of SD
• Others argued, that research findings regarding CMC and FtF SD are inconsistent and inconclusive
• There's a weak/moderate link between virtual relationships and increased SD
• The absence of nonverbal cues, anonymity, absence of gating and the nature of text-based communication generally encourages greater SD
• The absence of cues created heightened uncertainty, which people seek to reduce by disclosing more
• The absence of immediate nonverbal cues also reduces conflicting or distracting information and encourages feelings of interpersonal closeness
• Absence of gates means that virtual relationships are easier because lot of factors that prevent people from establishing FtF are removed (focus on attractiveness, speech impediments, social anxiety, shyness, appearance etc)
• Paradoxically then, the physical distance of CMC may confer a sense of security that make intimate sharing easier
• However, the evidence described shows a complex relationship between the virtual world and SD
• It's also changing rapidly - virtual communication is now also video-based and this makes it less different than it once was from FtF communication
• The type of CMC affects findings - we would expect difference in CM and FtF SD to be greater for text-based CMC than for CMC that uses video and this seems to be the case
• Results from a meta-analysis indicate that existing research doesn't unequivocally align with any one particular theory - sometimes some predictions of HCMC are supported, sometimes some predictions of SIP are support and sometimes some predictions of MRT are supported
• Internet romantic relationships progress through an inverted developmental sequence
• There's so much more to learn about how SD related to intimacy in the CMC universe, and how CMC and FtF realms interact
• Stories of how people can be stalked, bullied and menaced online have raised alarms
• CMC and FtF processes and whether technology will, as a whole, end up helping or hurting our ability to communicate intimately remains to be seen