The quality of online, offline, and mixed-mode friendships among users of a social networking site
Open accessAbstract
The first aim of this study was to compare the quality of online, offline, and mixed-mode friendships (i.e., friendships that originate online and extend to offline settings) among users of a social networking site. The second aim was to investigate the relative contribution of proximity, perceived similarity, and social attraction to the quality of each of the three types of friendships. We surveyed 2,188 members of a Dutch social networking site. Results showed that the quality of all three types of friendships increased over time. The differences in quality between online and offline friendships remained significant over time, but those between mixed-mode and offline friendships disappeared. Proximity did not affect the quality of any of the three types of friendships. Perceived similarity was the most important predictor of online friendships, whereas social attraction was the most important predictor of mixed-mode and offline friendships. Our results are discussed in the light of both interpersonal and computer-mediated communication theories.
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Online-only friendships may be of lower quality than offline or mixed-mode friendships.
“research suggests that online-only friendships may be of lower quality than offline or “mixed mode” friendships (i.e., meeting online and then spending time offline; Antheunis et al. 2012)”
From Transformation of Adolescent Peer Relations in the Social Media Context: Part 1—A Theoretical Framework and Application to Dyadic Peer Relationships (2018) · cites this paper as Antheunis et al. 2012
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- Authors
- Antheunis, M. L., Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J.
- Venue
- Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace
- Publisher
- Masaryk University Press
- Published
- 2012-12-01
- Volume
- 6
- Issue
- 3
- ISSN
- 1802-7962 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2318221287
- Cited by
- 101
- References
- 57
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 2 · 2013: 2
- FWCI
- 4.82
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by-nc-nd
- Locations
- Cyberpsychology Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Research portal (Tilburg University) (publishedVersion)
- UvA-DARE (University of Amsterdam) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Networks and Communications › Media and Digital Communication
- Keywords
- online friendship, friendship quality, social networking sites, perceived similarity, social attraction, proximity, computer-mediated communication, interpersonal relationships
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