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Social Interactions Across Media

Interpersonal Communication on the Internet, Telephone and Face-to-Face

University of Kansas nbaym{at}ku.edu

Yan Bing Zhang

University of Kansas

Mei-Chen Lin

Kent State University

Two studies compared college students’ interpersonal interaction online, face-to-face, and on the telephone. A communication diary assessed the relative amount of social interactions college students conducted online compared to face-to-face conversation and telephone calls. Results indicated that while the internet was integrated into college students’ social lives, face-to-face communication remained the dominant mode of interaction. Participants reported using the internet as often as the telephone. A survey compared reported use of the internet within local and long distance social circles to the use of other media within those circles, and examined participants’ most recent significant social interactions conducted across media in terms of purposes, contexts, and quality. Internet interaction was perceived as high in quality, but slightly lower than other media. Results were compared to previous conceptualizations of the roles of internet in one’s social life.

Key Words: face-to-face • internet • interpersonal communication • media • social interaction • telephone

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