Not such fast friends? The effect of intimate conversation on social connection in text-based getting acquainted interactions
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Clinical Trial
Abstract: People can foster social connection in new relationships through intimate conversation comprised of reciprocal self-disclosure and responsiveness, but the limited affordances of text-based communication may hinder this process. The present study examined the effectiveness of intimate conversation in promoting social connection during texting and in-person interactions. Two hundred and eighty-six unacquainted dyads ( N = 572) were randomly assigned to have an intimate or small talk conversation that occurred face-to-face or via text messaging on a smartphone. Afterward, participants reported how socially connected they felt to their conversational partner, including their self-disclosure, perceived partner responsiveness, and interpersonal closeness. Participants reported greater social connection after intimate (vs. small talk) and face-to-face (vs. texting) conversations, but the effect of intimate conversation did not differ across the two mediums. Exploratory mediation analyses revealed a serial indirect effect of conversation medium on social connection, such that texting (vs. face-to-face) interactions led to lower self-disclosure, which was then associated with lower perceived responsiveness and closeness. These findings suggest people can connect over texting through intimate conversation, but they may be less likely to self-disclose over texting than in face-to-face interactions, which can have downstream consequences for interpersonal closeness.
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: University of Pittsburgh
OpenAlex ID: W4413369492