The Development of Online and Offline Romantic Relationships: A Turning Point Study by Sophia W. McDowell
Data collection took place exclusively on the Internet. Potential participants were directed to an online survey located on a web site. The survey began with an explanation of the purpose of the study, qualifications to participate in the study, and an assurance of confidentiality.
In Part 1 of the survey, participants were asked for basic demographic information, information about Internet usage, general information about the dating relationship on which they would be reporting, as well as information about past romantic involvement. Figure 2 is a screen-capture of what the participants saw in this section of the study.
Part 2 of the survey consisted of a modified version of Huston et al.’s (1981) Retrospective Interview Technique (RIT) that was used in Baxter and Bullis (1986) and Bullis et al. (1993). The RIT asks respondents to identify all of the turning points in their relationship since time of first interaction and to plot these points chronologically on a graph. After completing Part 1, participants came to a web page showing a graph (Figure 3). The x-axis of the graph was scaled automatically for the length of the relationship reported in Part 1, and it was divided up into monthly intervals, beginning at the date the relationship began, and ending with the current date. The y-axis measured the interviewee’s sense of commitment in the relationship ranging from 0% to 100%. As in Baxter and Bullis (1986) and Bullis et al. (1993), "commitment" was undefined and left to the participants’ interpretations.
Participants were then asked to use the computer’s mouse to plot five major relational turning points on this graph. To plot a turning point, the participants used their cursor to locate the spot on the graph representing the time the event occurred and their perceived level of commitment immediately following the event. To record the turning point, participants simply clicked on the mouse. A window then appeared asking the participant to label that event. Adjustments could be made to the turning points until participants clicked on a button indicating that they have finished identifying the relationship’s turning points. Once this was done, a line was automatically drawn linking all five turning points, the first interaction, and the current date.
In the next part of the study, participants were asked for additional information about each of the identified turning points. The graph with the turning points remained on the screen so that participants could refer to it. For each turning point, the participant was asked to answer the following questions (modified from Baxter & Bullis, 1986; and Bullis et al., 1993): (a) Please explain in detail what happened during this event; and (b) Why did this event result in change in the relationship’s level of commitment?
Once this section was complete, a few more questions regarding the relationship were asked and the study was complete. Participants were thanked and informed that if they would like to receive the results of the study or be entered into the prize drawing for the gift certificate, they could submit their email address. This address was kept in a separate file from the responses to ensure anonymity. The entire survey typically took about 20 minutes to complete.