Online construction of romantic relationships on social media

This study draws on Knapp’s offline relationship development model to examine how people construct romantic relationships on social media, with particular attention to the role of affordances in this process. Based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 30 relational partners, we show that Knapp’s five traditional stages of relationship construction merge online into three because of social media affordances, including searchability, visibility, anonymity, persistence, storage, and editability. These affordances allow users to search and obtain information about potential partners quickly, conveniently, and anonymously before, during, and after the first interaction. They also enable users to initiate or avoid romantic interactions relatively easily, present shared memories, build a sense of togetherness, and edit or erase online content about previous partners. The findings suggest that most participants perceived Facebook, more than Instagram, as a platform of choice for relationship construction. Addressing the interplay between social media affordances, online relational practices, and offline relationship dynamics, the study shows that offline and online spaces are highly interrelated in terms of interinfluence. Therefore, we argue that the merger of stages is not merely a technical rearrangement but an indication of the fundamental role that online practices play in people’s offline realities, including romantic relationships.

Neighborhood-Level Predictors of Sexual Violence Across Intimate Partner and Non-Intimate Partner Relationships: A Case–Control Study

Ample research explores individual factors associated with sexual violence, yet individual, dyadic, and environmental influences on intimate partner sexual violence (IPSV) occurring in the larger context of non-intimate partner violence (NIPSV) remain relatively unexplored. The current study aimed to determine the extent to which county-level indicators in combination with individual and dyadic factors are associated with sexual violence across relationship types. Reported IPSV and NIPSV cases were obtained from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s (TBI) online incident-based reporting system. County-level variables indicative of neighborhood physical disorder, violent crime, income inequality, firearm prevalence, and community alcohol use patterns were retrieved from the online resource County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. Using a nested case–control design, we determined significant sexual violence risk within younger cohorts and across relationship types, finding three significant county-level factors: 1) income inequality, 2) rate of firearm fatalities, and 3) percentage of female residents. Suggested prevention and intervention efforts include targeting younger age groups for IPSV and NIPSV education, developing resources for a range of relational partners, improving legal access and law enforcement training for reporting, and continued examination of the role of firearms.

Revenge via social media and relationship contexts: Prevalence and measurement

Social media platforms’ unique characteristics may make them particularly good outlets for getting even with relational partners. Establishing the prevalence of social media revenge and identifying the forms such revenge may take in different relationship contexts is an important first step in broadening our understanding of these behaviors. In a mixed-methods study, undergraduates ( N = 732) and community members ( N = 124) were randomly assigned to one of four relational contexts (coworkers, family, friends, and romantic partners) and asked to describe an act of social media revenge experienced or observed in their assigned context. They then rated how often they were the avenger, target, and observer of five control and monitoring and 11 direct aggression behaviors adapted from the Cyber Dating Abuse Questionnaire. The prevalence of social media revenge across all relationship contexts, roles, and revenge types was low and participants reported observing social media revenge more frequently than being the target or avenger. Social media revenge was also more prevalent in some relationships than others and the type of relationship between avenger and target may have implications for how revenge is executed. Analysis of participants’ accounts identified novel revenge behaviors and suggested ways to improve measurement of social media revenge.

Exploring how couples navigate the COVID-19 pandemic using Wefulness Theory

Framed by Wefulness Theory (WT; Nuru & Bruess, 2022), the present study explores the COVID-19 global pandemic as a context for examining relational struggle and strength during times of challenge. Analysis of in-depth, dyadic interviews with 54 couples who reflect a broad range of ethnic-racial compositions, partnership structures, sexual orientations, and ages rendered intelligible relational partners’ wefulness practices in situ. Results reveal four suprathemes: (a) cultivating relational consciousness, (b) negotiating wefulness amidst challenge, (c) accepting life on life’s terms, and (d) inviting challenge as opportunity for growth. Data reveal how relational partners engage in ritualized (re)commitments as multi-vocal practices of expressing and embracing the current pandemic moment. Data also evidenced WT is heuristically powerful in reconceptualizing and illuminating relational meaning- and sense-making.

The discourses surrounding long-distance romantic relationships and perceived network support: A mixed methods investigation

This multi-method investigation focuses on perceived network support and its association with well-being for people in long-distance romantic relationships (LDRRs). In Study 1, interviews with 35 individuals in LDRRs were conducted. Analysis identified a general lack of support and understanding of LDRRs from peers and explored how partners manage unsupportive discourses. Study 2 quantitatively examined perceived network support for relationships and relational partners, and the association between perceived support and relational well-being. Participants ( N = 217) in LDRRs and geographically-close romantic relationships (GCRRs) completed online surveys. Results indicated that LDRR participants reported significantly lower network support for their relationship compared to those in GCRRs, but no significant differences were found for relational well-being. Perceiving support for one’s romantic partner from one’s network was predictive of relational well-being regardless of relationship type.

Stoicism and Verbal Aggression in Serial Arguments: The Roles of Perceived Power, Perceived Resolvability, and Frequency of Arguments

Impelled by a desire to control, suppress, and deny emotional response, stoic individuals may act out their pent-up emotions on relational partners by provoking conflict and/or engaging in partner-directed violent and aggressive behaviors. However, little is known regarding what factors can push stoics over the edge from remaining quiet or avoiding revealing frustrations to initiating aggressive behavior. This relationship between stoicism and aggression is important to consider in serial arguments, where the repetitive nature of a conflict may become increasingly difficult for stoics to manage internally. Here, we examined the influence of stoicism on verbal aggression in serial arguments between romantic partners. We additionally considered the effects of power, perceived resolvability, and argument frequency on the relationship between stoicism and verbal aggression. Using a survey design with a sample of 281 individuals involved in a romantic relationship, we observed that stoicism is positively associated with verbal aggression in serial arguments. While perceived power and resolvability did not moderate the relationship between stoicism and verbal aggression, argument frequency about a serial argument topic was a significant moderator. The results of this study imply that stoicism plays an important role in explaining aggressive tactics in conflict. A high argument frequency about a conflict topic may lead to a buildup of unexpressed emotions, particularly anger, in stoic individuals, resulting in an explosive release of violence and aggression toward a romantic partner. Unique results on the relationship between stoicism and power and directions for future research are discussed.

Emotional Support Processes and Physiology

Emotional support is a vital component of physical, mental, and relational health. Recent research on emotional support hints at the complex, dyadic nature of support interactions, and the role of physiology therein, that have yet to be fully explored. The chapter begins by describing the emotional support process and the role that physiology plays in each of the individual phases. Subsequent sections apply previous theory and empirical findings to explore the ways in which relational partners co-create supportive interactions and the role of physiology. This leads to a description of a new physiological model of support co-construction and avenues for future research. In doing so, this chapter fleshes out aspects of the support provision process that, as of yet, remain unexamined.

Dietary Similarity of Friends and Lovers: Vegetarianism, Omnivorism, and Personal Relationships

In a series of studies conducted in the USA and Poland, we found that vegetarianism can serve as a basis for the formation of personal relationships. Consistent with research on the similarity-attraction effect, we found that vegetarians were more likely than omnivores to have friends and lovers who were vegetarians. In study 1, vegetarians reported that their diets were a more important part of their identities than omnivores did. In studies 2, 3, and 4, we found that vegetarians were three to six times more likely to have vegetarian friends than omnivores were. In study 4 we found that vegetarians were twelve times more likely to have romantic partners who were vegetarians than omnivores were. These results suggest that following a vegetarian or an omnivorous diet is an important influence on an individual’s choice of relational partners, possibly because dietary choice is part of an individual’s social identity.