Relationship Maintenance using the Internet
Using the internet as a medium for maintaining relationships sounds like a good thing. People are able to maintain contact with one another using new media, and they are able to accomplish tasks through the internet therefore making more time for face-to-face. Although there are many positives, there also lie negative factors of using the internet as a medium for communication. For one instance, the internet causes people to remain indoors rather than networking or developing better social skills. People become reliant on the internet for their forms of communication, so when it comes time to meet face-to-face, they are not strong in face-to-face communication. Another problem with the internet is it allows people to do more work from home, so they are constantly working rather than spending quality time with others. The internet has become an excellent tool for work, research, social activities, and much more, but has interfered with the social lives of others. More people are spending more time on the computer, rather than maintaining their social lives in the real world. This has also affected familial relationships, due to the fact that people come home from work to essentially work some more. People are constantly reminding themselves of the positive affects of the internet and new media, but people also need to take a look of their personal lives around them. Are they maintaining their relationships outside the virtual world, or are the consumed by the virtual world? According to Baym (2004), “internet use does not bring radical changes to the structure and characteristics of social relationships” (Hlebec, Valentina, Manfreda, Katja, Vehovar, Vasja, 2006), which indicates that the internet does not have any radical affects on peoples social lives. The internet is a wonderful tool for leisure, work, and communication, but the internet needs to used as a tool and not as a lifestyle.
Hlebec, Katja, Manfreda, Valentina, Vasja, Vehovar. (2006). The Social Support Networks of Internet Users. New Media and Society, Volume 8, 9-32.
Article on Relationship Maintenance using the Internet:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3669/is_200407/ai_n9451851/pg_4
Maintaining Online Relationships
Without face-to-face communication, how are internet users supposed to translate the meanings of messages they receive. There are two types of relationships on the internet, one that is already established and one that is created online. The first type is Exclusive Internet-Based relationships, which are relationships that never meet face-to-face. These relationships are formed and maintained on the internet only. The other type of relationship is Primarily Internet-Based relationships, which means that the relationship was formed face-to-face initially, but is now maintained online (Wright, 2004). Primarily Internet-Based relationships, PIB, are generally established when people are separated by distance, and other means of communication are required than face-to-face. The online conversations are usually about day-to-day life, and “include conveying openness or willingness to communicate with a partner, being positive during interaction, assuring and supporting each other, communicating affection, spending time with important members of a partner’s social network, and avoiding potentially negative topics or unfriendly behaviors” (Wright, 2004). The people in these relationships already know what is required of them when communicating with them online. The people in the relationship have an understanding of what they can and cannot send to them in a message or when chatting. The first relationship type, EIB, has grown exponentially over the years since the internet has become a household item. Obtaining friendships has become easier, and keeps people actively involved other people’s lives. These relationships are found to be extremely satisfying, since people are usually using positive communication when sending them information. Also, forming a bond takes more time to establish, because communicating online generally takes more time than face-to-face conversation. These relationships can be more satisfying, due to the fact that there is not as much as an emotional bond with their internet friends as there is with their friends who they met face-to-face. Also, the people who meet online usually meet in areas that are of interest to both individuals. Therefore, there is a common ground to which they will agree upon. As with both styles of relationships, frequency in mandatory to maintain the relationships. If online chat or messaging becomes less frequent, than the relationship will weaken.
Wright, Kevin B. (2004). Online Relational Maintenance strategies and Perception of Partners Exclusively Internet Based and Primary Based Relationships.
Communication Studies, Volume 55, 239-253.
Here is a blog about the difficulties on maintaining online relationships:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060825212357AAvmRanHow to maintain relationships online:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/intouch/keepintouchonline.mspx
Forming Relationships in the Modern Era
Forming a romantic relationship on the internet can seem somewhat difficult. The difficulty has dramatically decreased, as of recent, with the new programs developed for internet dating. Now, finding the perfect mate is done by the computer. Computer matching has become increasingly useful for individuals trying to find a compatible partner. The new systems categories likes/dislikes, interests, hobbies, profession, and much more to find a suitable match. This enables couples to find interests in one another much easier. There are many sites for individuals to choose from. There are sites for every economic class around the world. Many companies require a charge for this service, which eliminates low income potentials from registering. Others do not charge any fee, so any class can join if they would like. Other sites are devoted to showing men women from less developed countries (Hardy, 2004). All of these sites provide a medium for establishing relationships. This medium allows for individual to essentially advertise themselves for the purpose of forming relationships. The dating websites also allow for people to provide lengthy detail of their personal lives, so others can determine if they are interested or not. By having the customer post narratives of their lives it prevents them from creating a fake profile, due to the fact that there is too much information to remember. Also, posting pictures of themselves makes building friendships and romantic partners less intimidating. People are able to put a face to the information they read. Communicated through the digital world allows relationships to form more slowly, and in the end the Internet can create immense friendships that can last a lifetime.
Hardy, Michael. (2004). Mediated Relationships.
Information, Communication & Society, Volume 7, 207-222.
Related Articles:
http://dating.about.com/od/sitereviews/tp/OnlineSites.htmhttp://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/10/09/eveningnews/main577356.shtml
Can we live in Cybercity?
Creating new friendships, or maintaining friendship online, have become daily activities for most individuals. Friends and family are now able to log onto chat rooms, post blogs, or instant message each other. Distance no longer extinguishes friendships, since friends are now able to communicate in the virtual world. New cybercities exist where friends can come together and communicate with one another without having to be in the same place at the same time, “Cybercity is a virtual community on the Internet, a social world that is no less real for being supported by Internet technologies, with residents drawn from countries all over the world” (Carter, 2006). Although the cybercities are great for locating or maintaining new friendships, finding trust in people can be hard when people are not able to communicate face-to-face. In face-to-face communication, people are able to distinguish fact from fiction through facial expression, body movements, eye contact, and speech frequency. All of these indicators are eliminated when communicating online, so how do people determine what friendships are are honest and real? A good way to indicate that people will be more open and honest is to determine how frequent each friend visits the same chat rooms (Carter, 2006). People tend to be more honest when they are sending the same messages to the same online chat rooms. Honesty is only one conflict when is comes to friendships on cyberspace. Another conflict, that is extremely important when maintaining or creating friendships, is intimacy. Due to the lack of trust, people need to be anonymous when visiting the chat rooms, because there is always a chance that their identity could be taken from them. Intimacy is an essential part of friendship, so how can there really be a friendship without it being intimate? And once the online friends meet outside of the Cybercity, how well are they going to be able to communicate face-to-face with one another. There are many factors as to why online friendships are not able to be as close as friendships in real life, but the Internet has made friendships more accessible and easier to maintain.
Carter, Denise. Living in Virtual Communities: An Ethnography of Human Relationships in Cyberspace.
Information, Communication & Society, Volume 8, 148-167.
Here is an article on online friendships:
http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20020504/bob9.asp
Finding True Love on the Internet
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Do you believe in love at first site? Or, can you believe in love at first click? New media, such as the internet, has impacted personal relationships to an extreme affect. People are now obtaining new relationships through websites, such as match.com or eharmony.com. Through these websites, people create a personal brand to attract new relationships, “brand management seeks to control and program a diffuse production process that proceeds through extended circuits of mediatized communication” (Arvidsson, 2006). The users of the multitude of websites create an image of themselves to seduce or attract potential partners. Individuals create profiles, which usually contain a profile of themselves and a brief synopsis of their life and interests. From that information, people find there new partner (or maybe their ‘soul-mate’). The internet created an open communication channel for people to find their potential mates. These sites break down the intimidation factor associated with approaching new people, and allows for users to meet new people without the feelings of fear or nervousness. Each person who is registered to the various sites is there for basically the same reason; they want to have a relationship. Now, users can view the profiles, and send emails to the potential partner. That allows for the other person to view their profile, and determine if they also want to send an email. Once the emails are exchanged, the people usually communicate using telephones. Once each person feels comfortable with each other, then a face-to-face meeting is established. The internet emails, instant messaging and telephones are all mediums through which these people establish trust and confidence in these new relationships. People no longer need to meet face-to-face to establish relationships any more. Today’s technological advances have now created a more efficient way for people to initiate relationships. Arvidsson, Adam. (2006). Quality Singles: Internet Dating and the Work of Fantasy. New Media and Society, Volume 8, 671-690.
Here is a press release about internet dating:
http://www.24-7pressrelease.com/view_press_release.php?rID=18217
Here is also a couple internet dating sites:
http://www.match.com
http://www.eharmony.com
I will be discussing how relationships are formed, and how they are affected by the media. Many people establish friendships and romantic relationships through the internet, and these people maintain their relationships online. How has new media affected our relationships, and/or how has new media improved the relationships in our lives?
