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Lecture Notes
Chapter 13: Technology and Media in Everyday Life
Outline and Key Terms
I. Introduction
A. Concurrent media use: People use two or more media systems simultaneously.
1. Teens’ texting use median is 60 texts per day.
2. Adults text less, but frequency is rising.
3. Teens will become adults, increasing the frequency.
B. Technology and media use at home frequently occurs in the presence of family
members, close friends, and romantic partners, while technology and media use
outside the home often occurs with those with whom you share more social
relationships, such as classmates, coworkers, acquaintances, and even strangers.
C. The use of technology and media takes place in the context of relationships, and our
knowledge of technology and media can be best developed through a relational
perspective and by examining their use in everyday life.
II. Perceptions of Technology and Media
A. Cave Drawings and Other Key Concerns
1. When a new technology is introduced in a society, it is generally framed
as something that will the save the world and as intrusive and threatening.
a. It tends to be evaluated according to standards and criteria
associated with previously existing technology rather than being
studied and evaluated according to its own unique standards and
norms.
b. Technological fears are more common than technological praises.
2. The emergence of any new communication technology has historically
elicited concern and anxiety, surprisingly similar in nature.
a. People tend to worry about the effects of emerging technologies
on family, community, and, of course, children.
b. While no evidence exists, we imagine focus groups were
developed by well-meaning cave people to examine the potentially
negative impact of cave drawings on innocent and susceptible cave
children.
3. Documented criticism of more recent technologies shows people
expressed similar fears when radio began appearing in homes in the 1920s,
and these fears were nearly identical to those expressed about television
when it began appearing in homes during the 1950s.
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a. Comic books were going to turn children into criminals, and
video games were going to rot their brains.
b. The Internet was going to destroy society by isolating people.
c. Many of these criticisms are still being expressed, even though
most have been proven wrong.
d. In some cases, such as with concerns that the Internet would
lead to isolation, the exact opposite has actually taken place.
B. Every Technology Is Relational
1. Regardless of whether its influences are positive or negative, each
technology changes how people communicate and interact.
2. They are inherently relational in their understanding and use.
3. At the center of all criticism and praise of technologies rest their
influence and effect on social interaction and connections among people.
a. This influence is probably why criticism and praise surrounding
each emerging technology have sounded so similar; relationships
among people have been the one constant throughout all human
technological development.
b. Adapted to accomplish and meet relational needs, all
technologies have influenced how you interact and relate with
others.
C. Impact of Technology
1. Technological determinism is the belief that technologies determine
social structure, cultural values, and even how we think.
a. People are essentially viewed as powerless against the force of
technology.
b. People viewing technologies as deterministic are the same
people most likely to evaluate emerging technologies with fear and
suspicion.
c. Somewhat related to technological determinism is the belief that
people are powerless against media content.
2. Social construction of technology is the belief that people determine
the development of technology and ultimately determine social structure
and cultural value.
a. There are many factors in the development and emergence of
technologies beyond the technology itself.
b. These factors include human innovation and creativity,
economics, government regulation, and actual users of technology.
3. Social shaping of technology is the belief that both people and
technologies exert influence on social structure and cultural values.
a. Social shaping of technology views both humans and technology
as responsible for what happens in the world.
b. Technologies do influence society and humans, and humans
exert influence on technologies and society through such factors as
innovation and creativity, economics, regulation, and the actual use
of technology.
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III. The Relational Uses of Technology and Media
Individuals do not use technology and media as solitary beings; people use technology and media
as relators.
A. The use of technology and media is a shared relational activity.
1. Most technologies—especially digital and electronic technologies—enable
interaction to take place and quite frequently are the actual basis for interaction.
2. The use of technology and media as a shared relational activity enables people
to accomplish certain relational needs (Table 13.1).
a. Promoting interaction
b. Withdrawing from interactions
c. Differentiating relationships
d. Enacting and evaluating roles
B. Technology and media inform people about relationships.
1. Media representations inform about how relationships should look.
a. Media representations of relationships provide information about
relational roles and demographic characteristics.
b. Relationships depicted on television and through other
technologies are not always realistic, however.
c. Relationships depicted in media do not always look like those
that audiences personally experience.
(1) Multiple races, religions, sexual orientations,
socioeconomic categories, and relationship configurations
are underrepresented in television and in all media.
(2) People may tend to believe that those relationships are
normal and that their relationships should be compared to
those in media.
2. Media representations inform about how to behave in relationships.
a. Media representations inform people about behaviors and
interactions within relationships.
b. These depictions provide models of behavior that inform people
about how to engage in relationships.
c. This use of media encompasses the socialization impact of
media.
d. Media portrayals of relationship interactions and behaviors may
not always mirror those in people’s lives.
C. Technology and media function as alternatives to personal relationships.
1. Technology and media provide many of the same uses and provide
many of the same benefits as personal relationships.
a. People do not necessarily turn to technology and media to
compensate for a lack of companionship.
b. Technology and media use has been found to enrich already
satisfied social and personal lives (Perse & Butler, 2005).
c. Words such as substitution imply an inferior entity is filling in or
taking the place of a superior reality.
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2. Companionship and relational satisfaction from the actual use of
technology and media
a. The relational and social satisfaction derived from technology
and media comes in part from their actual use and position within
the home.
b. The use of technology and media can provide the same amount
of relational satisfaction, if not better, than engaging in a personal
relationship.
c. The media equation maintains that interactions with technology
are the same as interactions with other people, and people use the
same social rules and expectations when interacting with both.
d. A number of studies have been conducted in support of the
media equation (see also Table 13.2).
3. Companionship and relational satisfaction from parasocial
relationships
a. While technologies themselves can satisfy relational needs,
many of these needs are met through relationships established with
media characters and personalities, known as parasocial
relationships.
(1) Relationships people form with media characters and
personalities have proved just as real and meaningful as
those within their physical social networks.
(2) People consider and treat media characters and
personalities just like they do family and friends.
b. Parasocial relationships have consistently been found to parallel
relationships in physical social networks (see research findings in
Table 13.3).
D. Technology and media are used in everyday talk.
1. Technology and media provide a general topic of conversation.
a. They enable people to establish a shared topic of discussion that
in many cases will not lead to a heated disagreement.
b. Even when media simply appear to provide a topic of
conversation, important social and relational work takes place, and
other functions of technology media talk discussed here are
ultimately accomplished.
2. Talk about technology and media affects their value and
understanding.
a. Talking about technology and media significantly affects such
things as the meanings derived from them as well as emotional
responses and attitudes.
b. Talk about such media content as a song, movie, or online video
often results in new understandings of those products.
3. Talk about technology and media affects their dissemination and
influence.
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a. Discussions of technology and media aid in the dissemination
(spread) of their use and messages.
b. Media content also spreads through interactions with others;
when someone has not watched a program on television or visited
a particular website, discussing them with others can still spread
the information contained within them.
c. The influence of media content may also be enhanced through
their discussion with others.
d. Because of the issues of trust and concern inherent in close
relationships, information gained from media but conveyed
through a friend, a family member, or another close relationship
may quite possibly be considered more significant and valid than
information received directly from a media source.
4. Talk about technology and media promotes the development of
media literacy.
a. Media literacy entails the learned ability to access, interpret, and
evaluate media products.
(1) Discussion of media content affects people’s
understanding and evaluation of this material, as well as
their comprehension of its production and influence.
(2) Talking about media with those with whom you share
close relationships significantly influences your actual use
of media and your development of media literacy.
b. Communication regarding the use and interpretation of media
often occurs among family members.
c. Much of what people know about media literacy and their ability
to critically evaluate media products has developed from
interactions with friends, classmates, coworkers, romantic partners,
and others with whom they share a relationship.
5. Talk about technology and media influences identification and
relationship development.
a. Talking about technology and media enables people to recognize
and promote shared interests, understanding, and beliefs, while
also serving to highlight differences among people.
b. Discussions of media content can uncover areas of similarity
and difference beyond actual media use and evaluation.
6. Talk about technology and media enables identity construction.
a. Discussions of technology and media allow people to enact
identities related to technology use and media preferences, which
are just as meaningful as other identities (McMahan, 2004).
b. One’s technology and media profile, a compilation of
technology and media preferences and general use of technology
and media, informs others about who he or she is as a person or at
least the persona that person is trying to project (see Table 13.4).
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IV. Smartphones: Constructing Identities and Relationships
A. Constructing Identities Using Smartphones
1. Personal and relational identities are created and maintained through
your use of smartphones.
a. We view smartphones, along with iPods, digital tablets, and other such
devices, as relational technologies.
b. They are used to emphasize the relational functions and
implications of their use in society and within specific groups.
2. The Meaning of Relational Technology
a. Identities constructed through relational technologies are based
in part on what it means for specific groups to use them.
b. Perceiving and using technology in a manner consistent with
these groups assists in establishing membership into these groups
and developing particular identities.
3. Relational Technology and Generations
a. A major influence on people’s perceptions and use of
technology is the generation in which they were born.
b. Technology and media generations are differentiated by
unique technology grammar and consciousness based on the
technological and media environment in which they are born.
B. Relational Technology and Social Networks
1. Your social network is an equally powerful force in guiding perceptions
and use of technology.
a. While generational influence is largely determined by the
availability of technology, the influence of social networks on your
use and perceptions of technology is determined by the actual use
and incorporation of technology and the social meanings that
subsequently develop.
b. Friends, family, classmates, coworkers, and others with whom
you share a particular relationship direct and shape your
assumptions about the value of technology and what its use
represents both relationally and personally.
(1) Cell phone adoption is often shared among members of
a social network.
(2) Your use of relational technologies and your attitude
toward them are likely to mirror those of your friends and
other members of your social network (see Archambault,
2013).
2. Technological Products and Service Providers
a. Identities are also created through the use of specific products
and services.
b. Cell phones and other relational technologies are symbolically
connected to certain lifestyles, activities, or media personalities.
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c. The actual service provider may even be associated with
particular groups or issues.
3. Ringtones
a. Ringtones can be viewed as a method of identity construction.
b. The selection of ringtones is meaningful and based largely on
how a person wants to be perceived by others.
c. The decision to keep a cell phone set on silent or vibrate
could be an indication that the person does not desire to draw
attention to his or her use of the technology.
4. Performance of Relational Technology
a. The use of relational technologies can be considered a
performance through which identities are constructed.
b. Behaviors are judged according to present norms and prevailing
expectations.
c. The appropriate use of technology is often determined by
location and occasion.
C. Relating Though Smartphones
1. Constant Connection and Availability
a. Smartphones position people as being constantly connected and
constantly available to others.
b. This constant connection has led people to make contact with
others more often than ever before.
c. New relational expectations have also developed as a result of
this constant availability.
d. Constant availability has also affected how relationships
develop, are maintained, and dissolve, especially among teenagers
and younger adults (Bergdal et al., 2012).
2. Boundaries and Closeness
a. Giving or denying someone access to your smartphone number
establishes both the boundaries and the degree of closeness
desired and expected within the relationship.
b. Providing another person with your smartphone number suggests a
desire for connection with that individual and perhaps an indication of the
type of relationship you wish to establish.
3. Shared Experience
a. The act of sending and receiving text messages both announces and
establishes shared membership and acceptance into a group.
b. Smartphones enable people to engage in shared experience even when
physically separated.
4. Social Coordination
a. The smartphone is used in coordinating physical encounters with others.
b. Smartphones enable people to synchronize their activities to the point of
microcoordination.
c. Microcoordination refers to the unique management of social
interaction made possible through smartphones.
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d. Three varieties of microcoordination:
1) midcourse adjustment—changing plans once a person has
already set out for the encounter
2) iterative coordination—the progressive refining of an encounter
3) softening of schedules—adjusting a previously scheduled time
V. Constructing Identities and Maintaining Relationships Online
A. Internet use is transforming knowledge, realities, commerce, politics,
education, and essentially all aspects of everyday life (see Chesebro, McMahan,
& Russett, 2014).
B. Online construction of identities and maintenance of relationships are
fundamental to many of the other changes taking place.
C. Social Networking Sites and the Construction of Identities
1. Friends
a. The list of connections on a person’s social networking site profile is an
important tool in the construction of identities.
1) People with a large number of friends are often perceived to be
outgoing and socially connected.
2) When someone lists 10,000 friends, others begin to wonder just
how legitimate that list and those friendships actually are.
b. The physical attractiveness of friends influences perceptions of the
user’s physical and social attractiveness (Jaschinski & Kommers, 2012;
Walther, Van Der Heide, Kim, Westerman, & Tong, 2008).
1) People with good-looking friends are more likely to be
perceived as good looking.
2) People with not very attractive friends are more likely to be
perceived as less attractive.
c. There appear to be gender differences.
1) Female users were judged positively when friends left socially
positive comments and were judged negatively when friends left
socially negative comments.
2) Male users, on the other hand, were actually judged positively
when friends left comments about drinking, promiscuous behavior,
and similar morally questionable behavior.
2. Photographs
a. Pempek, Yermolayava, and Calvert (2009) discovered that the majority
of users indicate that photographs help them express who they are to other
users.
b. Users tend to be very selective about the photographs that are posted
online.
c. Dissatisfaction with personal appearance is the primary reason users
give for “untagging” themselves in photographs of other users.
d. Another reason for untagging themselves in photograph is when they
are shown engaging in morally questionable activities.
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e. Male users are more likely than female users to cite being engaged in
such activities as a reason for untagging themselves.
3. Media Preferences
a. Technology and media identities are constructed through social
networking sites.
b. Many social networking sites encourage users to list favorite media.
c. Media preferences have been found to be an even more important aspect of
identity for social networking site users than such “classic identity markers” as
gender, political view, hometown, relationship status, and other categories
frequently listed on a user’s profile (Appel, Gerlach, & Crusius, 2016).
4. Strategic
a. Identity construction on social networking sites tends to be quite strategic—
users put thought into their comments and profiles (Bareket-Bojmel, Moran &
Shahar, 2016).
b. All comments and activities on social networking sites can be used in
the construction of identities and may be given a great deal of attention.
5. Public Disclosure
a. The good news and bad news about social networking sites is that they
provide an opportunity for a great deal of self-disclosure.
(1) Consider everything that you post online to be within the public
domain.
(2) The public disclosure of information calls into question
traditional beliefs about self-disclosure and relationship
development (i.e., Altman & Taylor, 1973).
(a) Traditional views purported that self-disclosure takes place
gradually, with information shared becoming more personal as
relationships gain intimacy or closeness.
(b) When it comes to disclosure on social networking sites,
the disclosure of personal information takes place
immediately.
(c) This information is provided to everyone, regardless of
relational closeness.
b. Public disclosure of information provides opportunities for public
confirmation and comparison.
c. Public disclosure of others enables comparison among users when
evaluating themselves.
d. Comparisons are being made to idealized images of others, which may
lead to more negative evaluations of the self and to increasing pressure to
enhance the image being portrayed on one’s own profile.
D. Online Communication and Relationships
1. Maintaining Relationships and Social Networks
a. Although online communication can lead to the creation of new
relationships, it tends to be used more for the maintenance or continuation
of existing relationships.
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b. Online communication is also positively influencing social networks.
c. Internet users tend to have a greater number of significant ties than do
nonusers.
(1) Internet use has been shown to increase the diversity of core
ties.
(2). Internet users are more likely to have nonrelatives as members
of their core network (Hampton, Sessions, Her, & Rainie, 2009).
d. Physical proximity still plays a large role in the development of social
networks.
e. Social networking site users, in particular, also indicate feeling less
isolated.
f. The greater number of significant ties and the overall diversity of an
Internet user’s social networks also increase the network resources.
g. Explaining the Benefits
2. Explaining the Benefits
a. Characteristics of Online Communication
(1) In asynchronous communication, there is a slight or
prolonged delay and interactants must alternate between sending
and receiving. People must take turns being the sender or receiver.
(2). In synchronous communication, people interact in real time
and can send and receive messages at once.
(3). Online communication can be both synchronous and
asynchronous, and the asynchronous nature of online
communication makes it easier for people to interact.
(a) Asynchronous communication also provides time for
people to be more thoughtful and strategic.
(b) This additional time can make the interactions more
meaningful and more likely to convey what a person wants
to share and get across.
b. Characteristics of Social Networking Sites
(1). The characteristics of social networking sites also explain why
Internet users are better able to maintain larger and more diverse
social networks, why they feel less isolated, and why they are more
likely to receive assistance when needed (see Chesebro et al., in
press).
(a) One characteristic responsible is the list of connections
users compile on these sites.
(b). Participation is easy on social networking sites.
(c) Another characteristic of these sites is that they
normalize the sharing of the mundane.
(2) Social networking sites often encourage users to post what they
are doing at a given moment.
(3) Despite the existence of and potential for negative experiences,
participation in social networking sites tends to be quite positive.
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(4) A final characteristic of social networking sites explaining their
benefits is that relating is the point.
(1). These sites are constructed in ways that enable connection to
take place.
(2) Intimacy, security, entertainment, knowledge, self-worth, and
other needs generated from relationships are also provided through
the use of these sites.
(a). People are able to learn more about relationships in general
and their own relationships specifically through these sites.
(b) Such knowledge may assist in the development and
maintenance of relationships online as well as offline.