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Article history: Research suggests that online communication may benet those high in social anxiety. The current study
Available online 13 November 2012 examined Facebook use from the perspective of adult attachment theory, exploring relationships
between attachment anxiety and avoidance and Facebook use. Social skills have been found to be related
Keywords: to attachment style and internet use thus we also examined the role of these skills. A diverse sample of
Attachment adult participants (N = 617; 50.1% female) completed a self report questionnaire measuring attachment
Social skills dimensions, social skills, and Facebook use and experience. In line with predictions grounded in attach-
Social network
ment theory, we found that individuals with high attachment anxiety used Facebook more frequently,
Online
Facebook
were more likely to use it when feeling negative emotions and were more concerned about how others
perceived them on Facebook. High attachment avoidance was related to less Facebook use, less openness
and less positive attitudes towards Facebook. These relationships remained when social skills were con-
trolled. These results suggest that Facebook may serve attachment functions and provide a basis for
understanding how online communication may be related to attachment styles.
2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction maximizing control over the pace and time of interactions, and
enabling perpetual contact with a social network, suggest that
With the growth in popularity of social networking sites (SNSs) Facebook could potentially serve needs for belonging, closeness
such as Facebook, Myspace and Twitter, new forms of social and security for those with high levels of attachment anxiety and/
interaction have emerged that differ in important ways from the or avoidance. To explore this possibility, an online survey was
ofine interactions more typically studied by social psychologists. administered to a large and demographically diverse sample of
Over a decade ago McKenna and Bargh (2000) highlighted four the general adult population, eliciting data on respondents attach-
characteristics that differentiate online from ofine social interac- ment styles, social skills, and use and experience with Facebook.
tions: increased anonymity, reduced importance of physical These data revealed reliable and theoretically consistent relation-
appearance, reduced barriers due to geographical distance, and ships between attachment style and Facebook use that lend support
greater control over the time and pace of interactions. These to the hypothesis that the use of Facebook is inuenced to some ex-
characteristics, McKenna and Bargh speculated, could make online tent by attachment style, particularly attachment anxiety. This, in
social interactions particularly appealing to certain types of people, turn, suggests that Facebook may provide a sense of closeness or
such as those suffering from social anxieties that handicap them in belonging that satises attachment needs in individuals who are
ofine interactions. In the past few years considerable research has otherwise anxious or avoidant in close personal relationships.
investigated the psychological characteristics of internet users,
particularly SNS users, with a focus on the personality correlates 1.1. Psychological correlates of Facebook use
and psychological outcomes of internet use (Nadkarni & Hofmann,
2012). Conrming McKenna and Barghs suspicions, there is Dozens of papers have been published on the social and psycho-
growing evidence that social anxiety may play an important role logical correlates of Facebook use and attitudes (Nadkarni &
in the use of SNSs (Buote, Wood, & Pratt, 2009; Caplan, 2007). Hofmann, 2012). Some demographic correlates have been
In the current study, we explored the use of Facebook from the reported, including gender, ethnicity, and parental education
perspective of adult attachment theory, examining whether there (Hargittai, 2008; Moore & McElroy, 2012), as well as cross cultural
exist relationships between attachment style and Facebook use. differences (Buote et al., 2009; Caplan, 2007). The majority of re-
A number of characteristic features of Facebook (and other search, however, has focused on personality correlates of Facebook
SNSs), including maintaining geographically distant relationships, use (Moore & McElroy, 2012; Ross et al., 2009; Ryan & Xenos, 2011;
Vasalou, Joinson, & Courvoisier, 2010). All studies report signicant
Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 1904 433190; fax: +44 1904 433181. associations between personality traits and aspects of Facebook
E-mail address: julian.oldmeadow@psychology.york.ac.uk (J.A. Oldmeadow). use, supporting Amichai-Hamburger (2002) claim that personality
0747-5632/$ - see front matter 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2012.10.006
J.A. Oldmeadow et al. / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 11421149 1143
is a major factor in internet use. Although the results across studies high in attachment avoidance, dened as a tendency to dismiss or
are not always consistent, taken together they implicate at least avoid intimate relationships (Smith et al., 1999).
extroversion, shyness and self-esteem. Extroversion associates Attachment theory was developed to explain childrens attach-
with more time on Facebook and larger friendship networks, ment to primary care givers, but it has been successfully adapted to
whereas shyness and low self-esteem associate with smaller explain adult relationships more generally, and romantic partner-
friendship networks but more intensive Facebook use (Nadkarni ships in particular (Hazan & Shaver, 1987; Mikulincer & Shaver,
& Hofmann, 2012; Orr et al., 2009). 2007). The working models developed in the context of primary
These patterns suggest Facebook use may serve different func- caregivers during childhood generalize to other kinds of social rela-
tions for different people, on the one hand satisfying extroverts tionships during adulthood. Individuals high in attachment anxiety
needs for social stimulation and large networks, and on the other have a hyper activated attachment system. They expect and fear
hand facilitating social interaction and a sense of belonging rejection from others, so are particularly vigilant in detecting cues
amongst shy individuals and those with low self-esteem. Based to untrustworthiness or rejection, and particularly sensitive to crit-
on a review of the literature, Nadkarni and Hofmann (2012) sug- icism and conict. They may be particularly concerned with man-
gest Facebook use is motivated by two fundamental needs, the aging their self-presentation, engage in behaviors designed to
need for self-presentation and the need to belong. In support, they reinforce relationships (e.g. gift giving), and seek regular conrma-
cite evidence that a sense of disconnection motivates Facebook tion of close others responsiveness. Individuals high in attachment
use, and that Facebook use may increase a sense of connection avoidance have a deactivated attachment system. They down-reg-
and self-esteem (Sheldon, Abad, & Hirsch, 2011; Yu, Tian, Vogel, ulate their needs for closeness and reinforcement from others and
& Kwok, 2010). Thus, there is converging evidence to suggest that avoid situations that activate the attachment system. They tend to
social networking sites like Facebook may offer a form of social avoid developing intimate relationships and are more likely to be
connecting that is particularly appealing to certain types of indi- socially isolated. The patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving
viduals whose needs for belonging and connection with others that characterize attachment anxiety and avoidance suggest,
are not fully realized in ofine social interactions. rstly, that online social interactions may be particularly attractive
While Facebook may not offer the anonymity and invisibility to individuals with attachment insecurities and, secondly, that
that characterized the chat rooms and newsgroups to which individuals high in attachment anxiety and avoidance may use
McKenna and Bargh (2000) referred, it does offer social interaction SNSs such as Facebook in different ways.
without physical proximity and enables greater control over the
time and pace of interactions. In addition, particularly with the 1.3. Attachment style and Facebook use
use of mobile devices, individuals can connect to Facebook virtu-
ally anytime, anyplace and anywhere, a characteristic we have re- In the domain of interpersonal relationships Facebook may offer
ferred to elsewhere as the Martini Effect (Quinn & Oldmeadow, advantages over ofine interactions for individuals high in attach-
submitted for publication). These characteristics, more so than ment anxiety and/or avoidance. For example, having the ability to
anonymity or physical appearance, may make online social inter- carefully manage self-presentation could be a particularly attrac-
actions particularly appealing for individuals who are anxious tive feature of Facebook for individuals high in attachment anxiety,
about personal closeness or physical intimacy, who anticipate who desire closeness but anticipate and fear rejection. By manag-
rejection from others, and who therefore tend to avoid developing ing how they present themselves to others, through text, pictures,
close personal relationships. These kinds of response sets are links, etc., such individuals may feel more condent in their ability
described and explained by adult attachment theory (Hazan & to maintain interpersonal relationships. Similarly, the ability to
Shaver, 1987; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). control the time and pace of interactions and to maintain relation-
ships without physical proximity could appeal to individuals high
1.2. Adult attachment theory in attachment avoidance, who tend to avoid closeness and value
their autonomy. Thus, online social interactions, and Facebook in
Adult attachment theory stems from Bowlbys (Bowlby, 1969/ particular, may contain a number of features that facilitate the
1982, 1973, 1980) work on childrens attachment to their primary development and maintenance of interpersonal relationships for
caregiver, extending the principles of child-parent attachment to individuals high in attachment anxiety and/or avoidance. Previous
close personal relationships in adulthood (Hazan & Shaver, 1987; research has alluded to this possibility, as individuals with an anx-
Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). Infants and childrens experiences with ious or avoidant attachment report approaching and responding to
attachment gures shape their working models about themselves, online and ofine friendships differently (Buote et al., 2009).
others and relationships, which inuence cognitive, emotional, Another way in which Facebook may appeal to individuals with
and behavioral response patterns in attachment-relevant contexts. attachment issues is by providing a sense of belonging to a social
These working models are characterized along two dimensions, network. Research shows that social network site use can increase
referred to as attachment anxiety and avoidance (Brennan, Clark, a sense of belonging amongst both adults (Sheldon et al., 2011) and
& Shaver, 1998; Collins & Allard, 2004). When needs for comfort children (Quinn & Oldmeadow, in press). Facebook provides a
and security are consistently satised the infant develops a secure means of staying in touch with what others are doing, observing
bond towards the attachment gure characterized by a positive relationships between others, and maintaining ones own presence
view of the self as lovable and of others as dependable. However, within the network (through wall posts, messages, pokes, etc.).
if needs are not met by the attachment gure a working model This may appeal to those whose attachment issues extend to social
develops in which the individual fears and expects rejection from relationships more generally, such as social groups. Very little re-
attachment gures. Individuals with this type of model are high in search has been done on attachment to social groups. However,
attachment anxiety, dened as an anxious or fearful preoccupation Smith et al. (1999) reasoned that individuals develop working
with relationships (Smith, Murphy, & Coats, 1999). If the experience models of themselves in relation to groups that parallel those
of neglect is repeated consistently enough the individual may devel- underlying interpersonal attachment styles. They developed a
op a working model of others as untrustworthy and undependable, measure of group attachment by adapting an existing measure of
and of the self as autonomous and self-sufcient. They may then interpersonal attachment, and found moderate correlations be-
avoid developing close relationships, which they fear will only lead tween interpersonal and group attachment anxiety and avoidance.
to disappointment. Individuals with this type of working model are These ndings suggest that attachment styles are not restricted to
1144 J.A. Oldmeadow et al. / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 11421149
normally include as friends on your Facebook prole? (1 = Pretty 3.2. Attachment, social skills, and Facebook usage and experience
much anybody; 7 = Close personal friends or family only). An addi-
tional 18 items probed a variety of dimensions of participants The items relating to Facebook usage (e.g. How often do you use
experience with Facebook, including their dependence on Face- Facebook?, How often do you post updates on Facebook?) were
book (e.g. I get anxious if I cannot check Facebook for a while), summed to give a single measure of Facebook usage (alpha = .621).
which emotions motivate them to use Facebook (e.g. I nd myself The 18 items relating to Facebook experience were factor analyzed to
wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel (lonely, extract the principle components. Principle components factor anal-
stressed, bored, sad, anxious, happy)), concern over social evalua- ysis with oblique rotation was used. Five factors emerged with eigen-
tion through Facebook (e.g. I worry about the impression people values greater than 1, explaining 65.3 percent of the variance (see
might get of me through Facebook), pride in Facebook (I am Appendix B). Items loading highly on the rst factor included those
proud of my Facebook prole), and indifference (e.g. If I dont related to using Facebook particularly when feeling negative emo-
check Facebook for a while I tend to forget about it). Responses tions (lonely, stressed, sad, anxious). We called this factor FB com-
were given on 7-point scales (1 = Strongly disagree; 7 = Strongly fort seeking. Items loading on the second factor included being
agree). happy for others (employer, parents) to view ones prole. We called
this factor FB openness. The third factor included items relating to
2.3. Procedure concern about how one is perceived by others on Facebook (e.g. I am
concerned about how I appear to others on Facebook). We called this
Participants completed an online survey that included the factor FB evaluation concern. The fourth factor included items
above measures as well as an additional section on video game relating to detachment from Facebook, such as I think about remov-
play. The latter is not relevant to the current study so will not be ing my Facebook prole, and If I dont check Facebook for a while I
discussed further. The order in which the various sections of the tend to forget about it. We reverse-scored this factor and called it
survey (ECR, SSI, Facebook usage and experience) were presented FB attachment. The nal factor included items expressing a gener-
was randomized across participants. ally positive orientation towards Facebook, such as I like my Face-
book prole and I nd myself wanting to check Facebook
particularly when I feel happy. We called this factor FB positivity.
3. Results
Factor scores were computed for each of these ve factors.
Relationships between Facebook usage/experience and attach-
Several studies have reported gender differences in attachment
ment and social skills are given in Table 2. In terms of usage, a
styles and social skills (Deniz, Hamarta, & Ari, 2005; DiTommaso
positive association was found with attachment anxiety, with
et al., 2003). In the current study independent t-tests revealed gen-
higher attachment anxiety associating with more intensive use of
der differences in avoidant attachment (p < .001), and on four of
Facebook. Usage also associated positively with three of the six
the six subcomponents of social skills (ES, EC, EE and SC,
social skills (SS, SE and SC). Participants higher in social sensitivity,
ps < .05). To control for these effects, gender was held as a covariate
social expressivity and social control tended to use Facebook more
in our analyses of relationships between attachment, social skills
intensively than those lower in these social skills.
and Facebook usage and experience (see DiTommaso et al. for a
Signicant associations were found between attachment style
similar approach). Consequently, hypotheses 1 through 4 were
and each aspect of Facebook experience. Notably, attachment anx-
tested using partial correlations (controlling for gender), and
iety was strongly associated with FB comfort seeking, that is, using
hypothesis 5 was tested using a hierarchical regression (also con-
Facebook particularly when feeling negative emotions. Attachment
trolling for gender).
anxiety was also associated with FB evaluation concern, that is,
worrying about how one appears to others on Facebook. Both com-
3.1. Attachment style and social skills fort seeking and evaluation concern also were associated with
attachment avoidance, but less so than attachment anxiety. Attach-
Table 1 shows the associations (partial correlations controlling ment avoidance was negatively associated with FB attachment, FB
for gender) between anxious and avoidant attachment scores and openness and FB positivity. That is, participants high in attachment
each subcomponent of social skills. Attachment anxiety was nega- avoidance were more likely to think about removing their Facebook
tively associated with SE, SC and EE. However, anxiety was most prole, less happy for signicant others to view their prole, and
strongly associated with ES and EC. Those high in attachment anx- less likely to be happy with and like their Facebook prole.
iety were more likely to be sensitive to criticism (ES) and more able There were numerous signicant associations between aspects
to control or hide their emotions (EC). Attachment avoidance was of Facebook experience and social skills (see Table 2). There was a
also negatively associated with SE, SC and EE. Those high in attach- strong association between social sensitivity (e.g. I am often con-
ment avoidance reported being less likely to enjoy socializing and cerned with what others are thinking of me) and FB evaluation
meeting new people (SE), less likely to take a leading role in groups concern (e.g. I am concerned about how I appear to others on Face-
(SC), and less likely to show their emotions (EE). book). Social sensitivity also was associated with comfort seeking
(i.e. using Facebook when feeling negative emotions) and attach-
Table 1 ment to Facebook. These relationships also held (though weaker)
Partial correlations (controlling for gender) between attachment style and social with emotional control (e.g. I am very good at maintaining a calm
skills. exterior even if I am upset). Thus, those high in social sensitivity
Social skill Anxiety Avoidance and/or emotional control were more concerned with how they
appear to others on Facebook, and tended to use Facebook
Social expressivity 0.119* 0.385**
Social sensitivity 0.443** 0.061 particularly when feeling sad, lonely, stressed or anxious. In
Social control 0.096* 0.241** contrast, emotional expressivity (e.g. I rarely show my feelings
Emotional expressivity 0.209** 0.484**
Emotional sensitivity 0.002 0.045
1
Emotional control 0.338** 0.008 Cronbachs alpha is likely to underestimate the reliability of ordinal scales
(Zumbo, Gadermann, & Zeisser, 2007). Given this, and the relatively small number of
**
p < .001. items (5), we considered an alpha of .62 to be adequate. Nonparametric correlations
*
p < .05. between items were all positive, signicant (<.05), and ranged from .083 to .447.
1146 J.A. Oldmeadow et al. / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 11421149
Table 2
Partial correlations (controlling for gender) between components of Facebook usage and experience, and attachment and social skills.
Table 3
R2 and standardized beta weights for individual predictors at steps 2 and 3 in the model. Effects of gender were partialled out in step 1 and are not reported here.
Individuals high in attachment anxiety are typically character- gests that for the present sample those high in attachment
ized by anxiousness about being alone, being sensitive to criticism avoidance generally do not have concerns over how others perceive
received from others and having a need for reassurance (Brennan them. There may therefore be some unique features of Facebook
et al., 1998). In the present study, we found that attachment anx- that, for those high in attachment avoidance, result in being con-
iety was positively related to Facebook usage, comfort seeking cerned about what others think of them. It must, however, be con-
and to evaluation concern. This would suggest that Facebook is sidered that our study focused only on Facebook users, who may on
being used more frequently by those with an anxious attachment the whole be relatively low in attachment avoidance. The charac-
style as a way to alleviate their feeling of being alone. In addition, teristics typically associated with high attachment avoidance may
their motivation for logging on and using Facebook may be moti- therefore be slightly weakened within the present sample. This
vated by their mood that is, they may seek to improve their neg- might go some way in explaining why there seems to be a relation-
ative mood by interacting with others. Social networking sites can ship between attachment avoidance and evaluation concern.
offer users instant access to social interaction with a myriad of We included measures of social skills because previous research
people (Urista, Dong, & Day, 2009) and it is perhaps this feature shows relationships between social skills and attachment style
that is particularly attractive to users high in attachment anxiety. (Deniz et al., 2005; Dereli & Karakus, 2011; DiTommaso et al.,
This instant access offers them interaction with others that may 2003) and between social skills and internet use (Caplan, 2005;
be needed, particularly when their mood is negative. In a qualita- Engelberg & Sjoberg, 2004; Harman, Hansen, Cochran, & Lindsey,
tive study, Urista et al. (2009) found that receiving comments on 2005). We therefore wanted to examine whether attachment style
a photograph, for example, can result in the user feeling as though would predict Facebook use over and above social skills. Indeed,
they are popular. An anxious Facebook user may log onto their pro- there were signicant relationships between social skills and
le when they are in a negative mood to check if any of their attachment style, and between social skills and aspects of Facebook
friends have commented on their content, which may improve use and experience. Social expressivity was positively related to
their mood by making them feel popular to some degree. What re- Facebook usage, indicating those who are more outgoing tend to
mains to be seen however is whether or not this Facebook usage use Facebook more intensively, and there was a strong association
results in a changed mood and if so, to what degree. It has been between emotional sensitivity and FB evaluation concern. Those
suggested elsewhere that the link between user experience and who tend to be emotionally sensitive generally tend also to be con-
benets gained from Facebook usage may relate to the characteris- cerned with how others view them on Facebook. Importantly,
tics of the user and how they use the site (DiTommaso et al., 2003). though, these associations between social skills and Facebook use
Future studies should consider examining the relationships be- did not account for the relationships between attachment style
tween Facebook use and mood change taking into account each and Facebook use. The relationships of attachment anxiety and
attachment style. Since those high in attachment anxiety are sen- avoidance to Facebook use and experience were largely unaffected
sitive to criticism and also require frequent reassurance, it could by the inclusion of social skills in the regression models. This sug-
be hypothesized that for those high in attachment anxiety, Face- gests that attachment style inuences Facebook use and experi-
book interactions would only improve mood if the interactions ence largely independently of social skills, and supports the view
are constantly positive and continually boost self esteem. that Facebook may serve attachment functions.
We found that Facebook users who were high in attachment Social networking sites such as Facebook can be many things to
anxiety were also more likely to be concerned about how other many people. The current study provides initial evidence that Face-
Facebook users perceive them. Since those high in attachment anx- book may serve attachment functions for people high in attach-
iety are sensitive to criticism, social interactions via Facebook may ment anxiety, and to some extent avoidance. Although the
be particularly attractive to these individuals. The online environ- relationships observed between attachment and Facebook use
ment can provide users with greater control over interactions and experience were largely independent of social skills, this does
(McKenna & Bargh, 2000) and Facebook may therefore allow these not rule out a role for other individual difference variables. Further
individuals to have greater control over their self-presentation. For research should aim to partial out the effects of attachment style
example, they can take their time over what to post on their status from other variables such as loneliness, extroversion, and more
update, what photos to put on their own prole and how to com- general social anxiety to further clarify the unique role that attach-
ment on others photos and posts. This may also go some way in ment plays in SNS use.
explaining why we found that high attachment anxiety was related The advantage of an attachment theory approach to SNS use is
to higher usage of Facebook. For example, upon posting a photo- that it offers a more theoretically grounded framework for under-
graph, the anxious attachment Facebook user may log on regularly standing how and why people use SNSs than simply identifying
to check if anyone has commented on their photo - being con- associations between personality or other traits and SNS use. An
cerned about how others may have perceived them in this photo- attachment theory approach invites one to ask which components
graph. In addition, they may spend more time on the site of the attachment behavioral system are implicated in SNS use, and
perfecting their Facebook self-portrayal, in an attempt to ensure what kinds of SNS use serve attachment functions. As already sug-
that others would view them in a positive light. gested, further research could examine whether using SNSs actu-
The present study also provided evidence that regardless of so- ally leads to positive outcomes like improved mood for
cial skills, individuals high in attachment avoidance used Facebook individuals with different attachment styles. Another avenue
less often, were less likely to be open about their Facebook prole would be to examine more closely the effects of activating the
and less likely to hold a positive attitude about Facebook. These attachment system on SNS use. Our data show that individuals
ndings would seem to t with the characteristics associated with high in attachment anxiety reported being motivated to use Face-
this type of attachment that is, someone who is autonomous, book particularly when feeling negative emotions such as loneli-
reluctant to share emotions and sees others as untrustworthy. ness. However, a more experimental approach that seeks to
However, we also found a signicant positive relationship between activate the attachment system and observe subsequent SNS activ-
high attachment avoidance and evaluation concern. This would ity would help to clarify whether SNS use is motivated by attach-
suggest that although those high in attachment avoidance are typ- ment needs and not just negative mood per se.
ically autonomous, they do have some level of concern over how A word of caution is warranted when generalizing from Face-
others view them, at least on Facebook. Since we found no relation- book use to other SNSs. Facebook is currently the most popular
ship between this style of attachment and social sensitivity, it sug- SNS (Kazeniac, 2009) and 83 percent of our survey respondents
1148 J.A. Oldmeadow et al. / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 11421149
indicated they use Facebook. However, there are other SNSs and I always seem to know what peoples true feelings are no matter
we cannot be sure that the relationships we observed generalize how hard they try to conceal them.
to other sites. In theory these relationships should generalize to I can accurately tell what a persons character is upon rst meet-
other sites that also offer the features of enhanced control, self-pre- ing him or her.
sentation and perpetual contact that we theorize make Facebook I can instantly spot a phony the minute I meet him or her.
attractive to individuals with high attachment anxiety. However,
they may not generalize to other sites that serve more professional Emotional Control (EC):
than purely social functions, such as Linkedin or Academia. Further
research would be needed to precisely dene which types of inter- I am not very skilled in controlling my emotions ().
net sites and/or usage are related to attachment styles. It is very hard for me to control my emotions ().
I am very good at maintaining a calm exterior even if I am upset.
I am rarely able to hide a strong emotion ().
5. Conclusion
Social Expressivity (SE):
To conclude, the current study provides evidence of theoreti-
cally consistent relationships between dimensions of adult attach- I love to socialize.
ment and Facebook use and experience that are largely I always mingle at parties.
independent of social skills. These ndings support the view that At parties I enjoy talking to a lot of different people.
Facebook (and possibly other SNSs) can serve attachment functions I enjoy going to large parties and meeting new people.
and may be particularly attractive for individuals high in attach-
ment anxiety. Further research should investigate which attach- Social Sensitivity (SS):
ment functions SNS use serves, or which parts of the attachment
behavioral system SNS use responds to. The current study provides I am very sensitive of criticism.
a promising rst step towards understanding SNS use from the It is very important that other people like me.
theoretically rich perspective of adult attachment theory. I am generally concerned about the impression I am making on
others.
Appendix A I am often concerned what others are thinking of me.
Abridged Social Skills Inventory listing the items used to assess Social Control (SC):
each component of social skills. Responses were given on 5-point
scales ranging from 1 (not at all like me) to 5 (exactly like me). When I am with a group of friends I am often the spokesperson
Emotional Expressivity (EE): for the group.
I nd it very difcult to speak in front of a large group of people ().
I usually feel uncomfortable touching other people (). I am usually very good at leading group discussions.
Sometimes I have trouble making my friends and family realize I am often chosen to be the leader of a group.
how angry or upset I am with them ().
I often touch my friends when talking to them. () Represents a reverse scored item.
I rarely show my feelings or emotions ().
Appendix B
Emotional Sensitivity (ES):
Structure matrix for the principle components factor analysis
I can easily tell what a persons character is by watching his or on Facebook experience items. The highest loading items in each
her interactions with others. factor are in bold.
Items Factors
I get anxious if I cannot check Facebook for a while 0.564 0.001 0.410 0.647 0.149
If I dont check Facebook for a while I tend to forget about it 0.268 0.030 -0.143 0.788 0.242
The longer I am unable to check Facebook the more I want to check it 0.528 0.008 0.402 0.722 0.188
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel lonely 0.757 0.128 0.282 0.165 0.308
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel stressed 0.823 0.023 0.342 0.266 0.214
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel bored 0.328 0.191 0.085 0.073 0.628
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel sad 0.828 0.022 0.343 0.198 0.171
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel anxious 0.838 0.049 0.376 0.223 0.203
I nd myself wanting to check Facebook particularly when I feel happy 0.414 0.103 0.213 0.293 0.482
I think about removing my Facebook prole 0.147 0.266 0.058 0.600 0.185
I worry about what people might say about me on Facebook 0.400 0.034 0.774 0.081 0.044
I worry about the impression people might get of me through Facebook 0.299 0.099 0.895 0.076 0.049
I am concerned about how I appear to others on Facebook 0.310 0.005 0.914 0.162 0.126
How I appear to others on Facebook is important to me 0.292 0.093 0.824 0.261 0.270
I am proud of my Facebook prole 0.116 0.417 0.233 0.277 0.738
I like my Facebook prole 0.076 0.428 0.099 0.385 0.770
I would be happy for a potential employer to view my Facebook prole 0.045 0.814 0.018 0.144 0.142
I would be happy for my parents to view my Facebook prole 0.019 0.785 0.017 0.068 0.187
J.A. Oldmeadow et al. / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 11421149 1149
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