The Development of Online and Offline Romantic Relationships: A Turning Point Study by Sophia W. McDowell
One way in which people overcome the technical limitations of CMC is to extend CMC to other channels of communication. Parks and Floyd (1996) found that nearly two thirds of relationships that began on newsgroups were at some point supplemented by mail, telephone, or FtF interaction. Moreover, about one third of relational partners reported that they eventually met face-to-face. In Parks and Roberts (1998), 80% of the respondents who reported that they had relationships that began on a MOO had also contacted their relational partner via email, 66.8% had spoken on the telephone, 54.5% had communicated by writing (cards or letters), 40.5% had exchanged photos by mail, and 37.7% reported that they had gone on to meet their partner in personal. Partners in romantic relationships were the most likely to eventually meet FtF (57.9%). The increase in number of contexts in which interaction occurs is typical of relational development in general (Parks, 1997). However, it may be of particular significance in online relationships. Rheingold commented that, "The way you meet people in cyberspace puts a different spin on affiliation: In traditional kinds of communities, we are accustomed to meeting people, then getting to know them; in virtual communities we get to know someone and then choose to meet them" (Rheingold, 1993, pp. 26-27). By the time relational partners meet in person, an intimate bond can already be formed (Cooper & Sportolari, 1997). As participants move into other channels, vocal and visual information are often added for the first time. Also, the move into other channels may indicate a blending of online and offline social worlds that previously had been separate (Parks & Floyd, 1996). Because virtual environments provide individuals a "safe" place to explore different types of relationships without the same repercussions they might be forced to face in physical life, when online relationships transfer to real life, participants risk finding themselves engaged in relationships that they might have otherwise avoided (Parks & Roberts, 1998).
What happens when people take the big step to bring an online romantic relationship into "real life?" How does the move from purely online interaction to other channels of communication (and in particular to FtF interaction) affect the development of the romantic relationship? Walther (1998) proposes that relationships move from virtual toward physical through interesting progressions, revelations, and tests. He labels this process as "coming out of the electronic closet." He also suggests that once an online relationship has "come out of the closet," it becomes a "mixed mode relationship." At this point, neither our existing current understandings of CMC nor of FtF relationships can be applied to the relationship, because these mixed mode relationships are neither exclusively online nor typical of "normal" FtF relationships. Throughout the process of "coming out," Walter suggests that the identities or the relational partners become more and more "warranted:" The connection between a person’s "true" self and his/her online self-presentation becomes increasingly strong (Walther, 1998). For instance, MOO participants who typically use fictional names for their online personae will divulge their real life names to others as they develop deeper dyadic relationships (Jacobson, 1996). The use of real life names, as well as the exchange of email addresses, seem to function as a social indicator of relational status (Walther, 1998).
Cooper and Sportolari (1997) suggest that online romantic relationships are prone to a dramatic transition from online life to real life. They offer the following scenario to illustrate the risks: A person feels sure she has found her true-love online; she breaks off her real life relationships, quits her job and flies across the country to be with her beloved, only to discover after interacting together in real life, that her partner is not what he seemed online.
Of course, dissolution is not the only possible outcome, however, the above predictions do suggest that whether positive or negative, supplementing cyber-relationships with additional communicative media (especially FtF interaction) will have significant effects on relationships. The following hypotheses are therefore suggested:
H1: Relative to other turning points, those representing the exchange of personal information (e.g., email address or phone number) and transitions to new forms of communication media (e.g., first telephone call) will be important and related to large reported change in relational commitment in online relationships.
H2: Turning points representing the first FtF meeting will be most important and related to the largest reported change (positive or negative) on relational commitment in online relationships.