Connecting Through Technology During COVID-19

This manuscript examines the patterns of information communication technology (ICT) use with friends and family outside of the home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the associations among ICT use and psychological (i.e., loneliness; stress) and social (i.e., social needs; relationship maintenance) wellbeing. In early May 2020, a representative panel of American adults was surveyed (N = 1,947). Results suggest that despite 90% of the sample complying with shelter-in-place (SIP) orders, face-to-face contact with friends and family outside of the home was the primary predictor of getting one’s social needs met and mitigating loneliness. In contrast with predictions drawn from media richness theory, voice calls were associated with less stress, loneliness, and relationship maintenance difficulties, while video chat was positively associated with all three. Moderation analyses suggested that other factors (i.e., SIP, age) influenced the strength of association between modalities (i.e., face-to-face, email, social media) and outcomes. The theoretical implications for MRT and the practical implications for mediated sociality during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed.

The Presence of a Mobile Phone Does Not (Necessarily) Change the Fundamental Processes of Face-to-Face Relational Conflict

This study extends research examining the presence of mobile phones during interpersonal interactions into the context of serial arguments between dating couples. Fifty-eight dating couples (N = 116) had two 10-minute face-to-face serial argument conversations in a laboratory-controlled experiment when technology was either present or absent. The most salient findings were consistent with longstanding findings in the conflict literature: positive communication was associated positively with desirable outcomes (conversational satisfaction, perceived resolvability, and conversation effectiveness) whereas negative behaviors were inversely related to desirable conflict outcomes. Overall, results showed little evidence that the presence of a participant’s smartphone affected the quality of serial argument conversations, but biological sex moderated the impact of technology on conversation satisfaction and perceived conversation effectiveness, such that technology presence negatively impacted women more than men. These findings suggest that the presence of mobile phones does not fundamentally alter effective conflict engagement in general, but there are likely circumstances in which the presence of mobile phones is important.

A Meta-Analysis of Mobile Phone Use and Presence

This research reports the results of two meta-analyses on 43 empirical studies that have investigated the effects of the presence and use of mobile phones during interpersonal interactions. Six of these investigations focused on the “mere presence effect,” which asserts that the presence (but not use) of a mobile phone leads to more negative perceptions of one’s interactional partner. The meta-analysis did not provide support for this effect. Thirty-seven studies focused on the effects of “phone snubbing” (“phubbing”) which addresses the use of a mobile phone during interactions. This second meta-analysis found a relatively robust effect which clearly leads to more negative perceptions by the non-using partner. Although numerous potential moderators were examined, none of theoretical interest were found to moderate these effects.

Inequality, Social Networks, and Internet Use: Exploring the Implications of the Social Diversification Hypothesis

The social diversification hypothesis (SDH) suggests that in multicultural societies Internet use can help mitigate structural inequalities in access to social resources. Whereas traditionally disadvantaged groups are predicted to use the Internet to expand and diversify their social networks, advantaged groups use it to maintain existing connections. The present study investigates this central prediction of the SDH by examining the relationship between Internet and social network site (SNS) use and inequalities in network size and diversity based on race, sex, and education among a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults. The results largely contradict the SDH. Internet and SNS use were associated with greater networked-based inequalities stemming from education. The relationships between education and indicators of network size and diversity were stronger among Internet users than non-users and stronger among SNSs users than Internet-only users. Network inequalities directly related to race, sex, and education were also explored.

Putting Communication First

No abstract

On the need for spaces for discourse in human communication and technology

not sure if this is needed...