“You Need to Back Off”: Utilizing Communication Privacy Management Theory to Explore Responses...

“You Need to Back Off!” Utilizing Communication Privacy Management to Explore Responses to Public and Private Negative Interpersonal Disclosures on Facebook West Virginia University Department of Communication Studies Media and Interaction Lab Lo: I’m been thinking about last night… Mid: I’m really upset about something you did last night… Hi: What you did last night was $@%&! “…We need to talk.” Abstract Social media sites such as Facebook provide both private and public contexts in which to share and disclose messages. From a communication perspective, this function can allow for diverse responses and reactions to online disclosures depending on the message access exclusivity. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to investigate how individuals would respond to negative interpersonal disclosures across the differing channels of exclusivity (private and public) using the theoretical perspective of Communication Privacy Management Theory Background Facebook is an increasingly-popular space for disclosing and sharing interpersonal information. Disclosures can be public or private, reflecting differences in message access exclusivity (MAC; O’Sullivan, 2004). CPM proposes that public or private disclosure of one’s relationship information might be perceived as boundary violations for those involved. RQ1: Does the degree of message access exclusivity of a negative interpersonal disclosure impact people’s stated response to dealing with that disclosure? The intensity of an online disclosure is also important (Anderson & Agarwal, 2011). More emotionally intense messages might elicit stronger rebukes. RQ2: Does the degree of intensity of a negative interpersonal disclosure impact people’s stated response to dealing with the disclosure? Method Online Survey with six experimental conditions varying MAC (public or private) and emotional intensity (low, moderate, or high). N = 131 students read a randomly- assigned vignette and were asked to craft an open ended response.. Responses were coded using an iterative thematic analysis, with one round of three untrained coders and one round of two expert coders. Zachary W. Goldman ([email protected]) Nick Bowman, Ph.D. David Westerman, Ph.D. Takeaway: Don’t disclose negative relationship stuff in public Results 1.Channel concerns 2.information seeking 3.Uncertainty 4.Privacy 5.Offended 6.Acceptance 7.Deletion 8.Immediacy 9.Confrontation 10.Relational maintenance (2) Responses differed as a function of MAC (1) 10 themes of responses emerged from data Public led to more… Offended Deletion Privacy Concerns Private led to more… Information Seeking Anxiety (High Intensity) Acceptance (Mid Intensity)

Upload
west-virginia-university-department-of-communication-studies
Category

Education
view
815
download
0

TAGS:

Embed Size (px):

description

ABSTRACT: One of the most interesting features of social media sites is that they provide both private and public contexts in which to share messages. Studies have suggested that people perceive interpersonal messages differently based on this characteristic, but less is known about how people may intend to respond to messages based on their access exclusivity. Building upon a previous study in this area, the current study examined people’s responses to a hypothetical situation in which they received a negative interpersonal disclosure of varying intensity either publicly or privately through Facebook. Data suggest that privately-disclosed messages elicited more uncertainty and more uncertainty reduction behaviors. Publicly-disclosed messages caused recipients to feel more offended about the content, express privacy violation concerns, and delete the offending content. These findings are discussed for their theoretical value, and limitations and directions for future research are as well. Goldman, Z., Bowman, N. D., & Westerman, D. (2013, April).“You need to back off:” Utilizing communication privacy management theory to explore responses to public and private interpersonal disclosures on Facebook. Paper presented at the Broadcast Education Association Research Symposium “Media and Social Life: The Self, Relationships, and Society,” Las Vegas.

Transcript of “You Need to Back Off”: Utilizing Communication Privacy Management Theory to Explore Responses...

“You Need to Back Off!”

Utilizing Communication Privacy Management to Explore Responses to Public and Private Negative Interpersonal Disclosures on Facebook

West Virginia UniversityDepartment of Communication StudiesMedia and Interaction Lab

Lo: I’m been thinking about last night…Mid: I’m really upset about something you did last night…Hi: What you did last night was $@%&!

“…We need to talk.”

AbstractSocial media sites such as Facebook provide both private and public contexts in which to share and disclose messages. From a communication perspective, this function can allow for diverse responses and reactions to online disclosures depending on the message access exclusivity. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to investigate how individuals would respond to negative interpersonal disclosures across the differing channels of exclusivity (private and public) using the theoretical perspective of Communication Privacy Management Theory (Petronio, 2002).

BackgroundFacebook is an increasingly-popular space for disclosing and sharing interpersonal information. Disclosures can be public or private, reflecting differences in message access exclusivity (MAC; O’Sullivan, 2004). CPM proposes that public or private disclosure of one’s relationship information might be perceived as boundary violations for those involved. RQ1: Does the degree of message access exclusivity of a negative interpersonal disclosure impact people’s stated response to dealing with that disclosure?

The intensity of an online disclosure is also important (Anderson & Agarwal, 2011). More emotionally intense messages might elicit stronger rebukes. RQ2: Does the degree of intensity of a negative interpersonal disclosure impact people’s stated response to dealing with the disclosure?

MethodOnline Survey with six experimental conditions varying MAC (public or private) and emotional intensity (low, moderate, or high).

N = 131 students read a randomly-assigned vignette and were asked to craft an open ended response.. Responses were coded using an iterative thematic analysis, with one round of three untrained coders and one round of two expert coders.

Zachary W. Goldman ([email protected])

Nick Bowman, Ph.D.David Westerman, Ph.D.

Takeaway:

Don’t disclose negative relationship

stuff in public Facebook

walls, because it’s

inappropriate

! ~wvu

Results

1. Channel concerns2. information seeking3. Uncertainty4. Privacy5. Offended

6. Acceptance7. Deletion8. Immediacy9. Confrontation10.Relational maintenance

(2) Responses differed as a function of MAC