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Visual-related conflicts in close relationships.
Federico Lucchesi1, Katharina Lobinger1
1Institute of Digital Technologies for Communication (ITDxC), USI Università della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland.
Visual Communication
|November 7, 2025
Summary
Visual communication in relationships can cause conflict. Problems arise from sharing, archiving, or deleting images, leading to misunderstandings and relationship issues.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Communication Studies
- Human-Computer Interaction
Background:
- Interpersonal conflicts in close relationships are common.
- The role of visual communication in relationship dynamics is increasingly significant.
- Problematic use of visual practices can strain relationships.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore visual-related interpersonal conflicts in close relationships.
- To understand how visual communication and practices contribute to conflict.
- To identify specific triggers for visual-related conflicts among partners and friends.
Main Methods:
- Conducted 90 semi-structured pair and individual in-depth interviews.
- Applied a repertoire-oriented approach to data collection.
- Focused on romantic partners and friends.
Main Results:
- Visuals' polysemic nature and practices like sharing, archiving, and deleting contribute to conflict.
- Conflicts arise from miscommunication, non-negotiation of sharing, exclusion from online presentations, online monitoring, and deletion requests.
- Mundane, everyday visual content is a frequent source of conflict.
Conclusions:
- Problematic visual communication poses risks to close relationships.
- Understanding visual-related conflicts is crucial for relationship maintenance.
- Further research is needed on digital visual practices and relationship health.
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