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Communicating Commitment: A Relationship-Protection Account of Dyadic Displays on Social Media
Kori L Krueger1, Amanda L Forest1
1University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin
|January 4, 2020
Summary
People use dyadic displays (DDs) on social media to protect their romantic relationships. This study found that the motivation to protect a relationship predicts DD use and that DDs signal relationship quality, deterring potential rivals.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Relationship Science
Background:
- Dyadic displays (DDs) are common on social media, but the underlying motivations for their use are not fully understood.
- Existing research has not extensively explored the function of DDs in the context of romantic relationship maintenance and protection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and test a relationship-protection account for the use of dyadic displays (DDs) on social media platforms.
- To investigate whether relationship-protection motivation predicts DD use and if DDs serve a relationship-protective function.
Main Methods:
- Study 1: A correlational study involving romantically involved Facebook users to examine the relationship between protection motivation and DD use.
- Study 2: An experimental study manipulating the presence of DDs on Facebook profiles to assess perceptions of relationship quality and target receptiveness.
Main Results:
- Relationship-protection motivation positively predicted dyadic display (DD) use on Facebook, even when controlling for feelings of interconnectedness.
- Relationship-protection motivation mediated the effects of relationship satisfaction and commitment on dyadic display (DD) use.
- Experimentally manipulated dyadic displays (DDs) led participants to perceive a target's relationship as higher quality and less receptive to advances.
Conclusions:
- Findings support the relationship-protection account, suggesting people use dyadic displays (DDs) on social media to safeguard their romantic relationships.
- Dyadic displays (DDs) function to signal relationship quality and potentially deter romantic interest from third parties, thereby protecting the relationship.
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