Close Encounters: Communication in Relationships
SAGE Journal Articles
This article examines the role of privacy in a socially mediated model. Facebook is the primary mode of social media examined; however, the study applies to several models. The comparison is made to reality shows and other forms of self-disclosure in media settings. The question becomes one of the disclosures that depends greatly upon the venues and perceived communication responses. Attitudes toward privacy are explored in terms of what is acceptable in the world of social media and virtual reality.
- Discuss the role of privacy in a social mediated model.
- Explain the problems that arise from secrets in relationships.
- Discuss the perception of privacy in social applications.
- Explain the rationale for disclosure and secrecy.
This article serves to examine the particular cues used by those who discuss secrets or elude to secrets in interpersonal exchanges. Cues include lying and deception that is deliberate and meant to confuse the communication participants. The “maxim of quality” is discussed as a means of evading certain topics and issues. This is a violation of the communication exchange according to Grice (1975), whose research was extensive in this area. The study was conducted in Japan and the participants were asked to explain when they believed someone was inferring a secret. The results showed that evasion of the topic and periods of silence were the most used cues in the conversations.
- Discuss the means that may be used in cultivating a secret through inference.
- Explain the violation of the “maxim of quality” as described by the author.
- Discuss the results of the research and the implications of topic evasion.
- Discuss the rationale for silence and deception in communication interactions.