Slovenia has a unique culture because of its high gender equality index but traditional gender roles. As such, the Slovene population is of particular interest regarding communication between romantic partners, especially when interrole conflicts occur because of work-family (WF; when work responsibilities interfere with family) and family-work (FW; when family life interferes with work) conflict. This study explores the associations among job stress, division of labor (DoL), WF and FW conflict, and relational well-being. We surveyed 95 Slovene women in dual-earner couples (married or in lifelong commitments) about their work and family lives. DoL satisfaction was negatively associated with DoL proportion (the share of housework completed by each person) and positively associated with FW conflict. Job stress and WF conflict were positively associated. Only FW conflict was inversely associated with positive relational outcomes. This study provides insight into how Slovene women experience interrole conflict and the potential impact of FW conflict on relational well-being. Implications for relational, gender, and work-life scholars and practitioners are discussed.
Interpersonal mediated communication research has demonstrated that exchanging cues during online interactions can change message receivers’ perception of the senders in socially desirable ways. Building from previous self-transformative work, this work explores how perceptions of others are also shaped by the messages we write evaluating others. More specifically, the research examines the effects of sending different types of evaluative messages on attitude, social attraction, physical attraction, and task attraction toward a hypothetical CMC partner. The first experiment (N = 193) prompted participants to view a post of a video game player and then provide a confirmatory or disconfirmatory evaluation or no evaluation. Results indicated that providing positive evaluations caused a positive change in attitude toward the target, while providing negative evaluations negatively affected attitude but did not necessarily affect social, task, or physical attraction. The second experiment (N = 129) conceptually replicated the first experiment’s design in the context of an Instagram post. The results generally replicated those of the first study but additionally produced significant results on social attraction. Providing an evaluation caused significant changes in the receivers’ perception of attitude and social attraction, with the direction of change corresponding with the valence of the evaluations given to the target.
Two studies were conducted to test the convergence of mass and interpersonal media processes and their effects on YouTube. The first study examined the influence of interpersonal interactions on video enjoyment. The results indicated that positive comment valence affected participants’ identification with the content creator, which then affected enjoyment of the video. To investigate the effects of convergence from a macro-level perspective, the second study tracked and recorded data from 32 YouTube videos for 34 days and recorded the following data for each video: number of views, likes, and comments/responses. The results indicated that the more content creators and users interact, the more likes the video receives. However, user-to-user interactions are associated with a decrease in the number of likes a video receives.
Existing research on parental information literacy focuses on parents’ ability to evaluate information. This approach does not account for conflicting or unwanted information and obscures the emotional impact of unsought information. We aimed to (1) document the sources women use most frequently for accessing breastfeeding information, (2) explore the reasons women choose some sources over others, (3) test the relationship between source characteristics and breastfeeding self-efficacy, and (4) determine the extent to which four source characteristics – competence, trustworthiness, goodwill, and social support – predict breastfeeding self-efficacy. This study was conducted in two phases. The first phase consisted of interviews and focus groups, which we analyzed inductively using a grounded theory approach. In phase two, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of women who were currently breast-feeding, collecting data on the source credibility and social support associated with the source they use most frequently and the participants’ breastfeeding self-efficacy. We used multiple regression to analyze our survey data. The frequency with which our participants encountered conflicting and unsought prompted them to view sources that combine expertise and social support as ideal. However, these sources are often difficult to access, leading to a reliance on online sources. This compromise has implications for breastfeeding tenure, as both competence and social support predicted breastfeeding self-efficacy. This study demonstrates how emotional aspects of information seeking shape women’s preferred sources, how accessibility limits the use of preferred sources, and how source competence and social support influence breastfeeding self-efficacy.
Two studies were conducted to examine the hypothesized effects of both warranting theory and truth default theory in an online dating context. The variables of interest were compared using bivariate correlations and competing serial mediation models were presented. The 2x2 experiments examined the effects of perceived motivation and ability to manipulate. Perceived motivation and ability to manipulate were significantly correlated with warranting value. However, warranting value was not correlated with the impression outcomes (trustworthiness, content veracity, and warmth). Neither the warranting theory nor the truth default theory serial mediation models were significantly predicted by the data. This was partially explained by a failed manipulation of perceived motivation. Indirect effects of ability on impressions that excluded warranting value were found in Study 2. Together, the studies provide a first look into these relationships and exciting new avenues for future research.
Societal norms of commitment to family make gaining and maintaining family distance challenging. This study utilizes the investment model (Rusbult, 1980, 1983) to understand family commitment in the context of family member marginalization. A survey of 285 marginalized family members revealed family member marginalization is associated with lower family satisfaction and investment and higher availability of alternative kin relationships. The negative association between perceptions of family member marginalization and family commitment was mediated by family satisfaction and investment. Financial dependence on family, family-blame, self-blame, and intentionality of marginalization moderated the association between family member marginalization and (a) satisfaction and (b) investment. Implications for the investment model and practical implications for supporting marginalized members are discussed.
How firms respond to complaints or negative online reviews and the effectiveness of manager response types is an area that has recently become a focal point for researchers. The present study utilized an experimental design to investigate the effect of restaurant manager response types to negative online reviews resulting from expectation violations. Results indicated that restaurants that possess higher ratings are assigned more trust. Subsequently, higher-rated restaurants have more power to increase customer satisfaction than those with lower ratings, especially when the restaurant publishes personalized manager responses.
With the growing use of video chat in daily life, it is critical to understand how visual communication channels affect interpersonal relationships. A potentially important feature that distinguishes video chats from face-to-face interactions is the communicators’ ability to see themselves during the interaction. Our purpose was to determine the effects of self-viewing on the process and outcome of a workplace confrontation. A dyadic experiment with two (self-viewing vs. no self-viewing) conditions was conducted using multi-instruments (self-report, physiological arousal, eye-tracking). Results showed that self-viewing reduced self-evaluation, which subsequently reduced solution satisfaction. Self-viewing also impaired one’s ability to assess their partner’s attitude and lowered partner evaluation. Although self-viewing decreased negative emotional expressions, the effect on conversation tone varied depending on the role an individual played. The overall negative impacts of self-viewing ability have significant implications for the appropriate implementation of a computer-mediated channel for enhancing one’s experience when having a difficult conversation.
The present research examines how perceptions of e-scooter mobile apps (i.e., a communication technology) influence intent to use e-scooters (i.e., a transportation technology) while considering other perceptions specific to e-scooters (ease of use, usefulness, safety, environmental impact, and enjoyment), context of use (geographic landscape), and demographic factors (age and sex). Results suggest mobile app perceived ease of use is associated with e-scooter use intent and this effect is mediated by e-scooter perceived usefulness, even when controlling for e-scooter perceived ease of use as well as other influential elements of e-scooter use. In addition to illustrating the importance of user experiences with mobile apps within the e-scooter context, this interdisciplinary research furthers a fundamental argument that media technologies are an integral factor in the adoption of transportation technologies.
Keeping it Casual or Lifelong Connection? The Effect of Digital Affordances on Attraction in an Online Dating Profile.
Lane, B., Mejia, R., Earle, K., & Mott, A. (2020)
Dating has changed significantly in the past 30 years. New methods of finding a partner have evolved with the changing media and online dating sites influence these communication processes. In this experiment, we examined how digital affordances influenced attraction. Participants (n= 315) were randomly assigned to view an online dating profile from either eHarmony, Tinder, or Craigslist and asked to report their romantic, social, and physical attraction. Our results indicated the language, the website, and the sex of the profile owner influence romantic attraction. Additionally, the language and the website influence social attraction and the photograph influences physical attraction. We argue that digital affordances of disparate dating sites are not equal to one another, as design differences influence how users interpret the romantic, social, and physical attraction of online dating profiles; considering the recent closure of Craigslist’s dating section, the future of romantic, social, and physical attraction may increasingly be bound to the technical pressures of an increasingly photo-centric online dating industry.
According to social information processing theory (SIPT), humans are actively encoding and decoding information when communicating through technology (Walther, 1992). This study uses SIPT as a theoretical guideline and examines the type of attributions formed when elements such as time stamps, read receipts, and ellipses are present in text-based communication. Malle’s (2006) categorization of attribution types was used to analyze attributions from a free response section of an online experiment. Various chi-square tests were used to determine if attributions differed when various chronemic cues were present. Only one hypothesis was supported, but results provide opportunities for future research in this area.