Romantic Relationships and Social Media Use: The Emergence and Management of Relational Dialectics
Abstract
This study implements Baxter’s (1988) relational dialectic theory to determine how
relational dialectics emerge and are managed when people in romantic relationships use social
media. Eighteen participants who were in romantic relationships and used social media took part
in one-on-one semi-structured interviews. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using
the framework analysis method.
The participants in this study experienced both internal and external dialectics when
sharing information about their relationship on social media and when sharing information about
their social media use with their significant other. Revelation-concealment emerged as the
dominant dialectic, as participants faced the inherent expectations of transparency with social
media. Participants stated that it is important to determine the other person’s comfort level with
sharing on social media and how they typically use social media. This study reinforces the need
to include both internal and external dialectics in future research on romantic relationships and
social media use.