Social Penetration Theory Application

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Social Penetration Theory Application

Theory Description

The social penetration theory was developed by Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor in 1973 to understand the relationships between individuals. It explains how information exchange occurs in developing interpersonal relationships to create a bond. According to the founders, it involves self-disclosure where individuals have to reveal themselves to the other party to establish a connection and develop the bond (Panos, 2014). The theory can be applied in work relationships, friendship, familial ties, romantic relationships, and also social groups that are created to achieve an objective. In the application of the theory, communication is essential as the parties need to have ideas to understand the social abilities of the other persons. As self-disclosure increases, the depth of connection also rises, and the interpersonal communication deepens to more intimate levels. The rise in the relationship is a result of sharing information about oneself with one another hence facilitating the understanding between the members.

The theory was related to the peeling of the layers of an onion to get to the core. The onion theory refers to how individuals gradually expose little details of themselves to other people by peeling a layer of themselves until they can understand one another to form an in-depth relationship. Therefore, the social penetration theory occurs gradually as the parties try to understand one another until they form the required strong relationship. However, the relationship only deepens as long as there are anticipated benefits that exceed costs (Baack et al., 2000).The founders of the theory developed it based on five stages. These stages include, first, the orientation stage where individuals indulge in small talks that help in introducing oneself to the other. The small talk does not result in any formed relationship. The second stage is the exploratory affective stage, where the parties reveal the inner self through general topics such as the weather and politics (Taylor, 1968). Most relationships break at this point, and a stronger bond fails to be formed. The third stage is affective, where the individuals start sharing information comfortably, can even argue and criticize one other or a third party. At this stage, the individuals start valuing one another and cherish the relationship they have. The fourth stage is where the relationship deepens with more sharing of feelings, values, and beliefs. The connection is more reliable at this stage, and the parties have gotten fond of one another. The last step is the de-penetration, where only some of the created relationships reach. It is where the parties find the link more costly and draining than beneficial to them; therefore, they decide to withdraw.

The relationship described by the stages can stop at any of the steps. However, many get to the fourth stage, but only a few end up being dissolved. The communication behaviors through the actions can be verbal, non-verbal, or environmental. Verbal is where individuals exchange information by talking; non-verbal includes the use of body language. At the same time, the environment relates to the distance between people and the physical objects used in separating the two persons or individuals forming a social group. The behavior changes help in creating a bond based on the background of the parties mentioned. The development of relationships requires the exchange of information, which is measured in breadth, referring to the number of topics discussed, the width, referring to the extent of intimacy that founds the interaction. Both the breadth and depth are guided by the norm of reciprocity, where one individual is required to provide information at the same level as to which the other party does (Carpenter & Greene, 2016). Each individual should be open to sharing some information to encourage and console one another.

Peer-Reviewed Articles

In research finding the self-disclosure among bloggers, the social penetration theory was applied to understand the role of social psychology in cyberspace. It attempted to find the extent to which bloggers disclose personal information on the internet compared to the disclosure with family members. The authors developed a blogger self-disclosure scale categorized into nine scale, including attitude, body, career, feelings, personals, hobbies, money, experiences, and unclassified. It applied 50 bloggers with 1038 participants who took part in a questionnaire (Tang & Wang, 2012). Through the use of social penetration theory, the research found that bloggers express personal interests in broad topics and do not involve their own lives in the blogs. The bloggers are aware of the risks of extensive disclosure and would rather disclose interests and experiences.

In the second article, Mangus et al. (2020), used social penetration theory to determine the effects of customer felt relationship empathy and mutual information sharing on relationship results. The authors used a qualitative method for data collection through a semi-structured interview. Their method of study was qualitative involving semi-structured interviews, surveys, and secondary research methods. The research found that disclosure content affects the relationship outcome with positive effects on customer-felt relationship empathy and trust. It also showed that the extent to which the buyers and sellers disclose various contents would determine the performance of the relationship.

In the third article, Huang (2016) developed research to examine the beneficial effects of an individual’s self-disclosure on social network sites. He applied the social penetration theory to determine the impact of self-disclosure on social support and online social wellbeing. It also established the effect of social support on online social welfare. It applied secondary literature and quantitative survey while using confirmatory factor analysis and composite reliability values to assess the results. The research found that self-closure constructs the amount of honesty, depth, and valence. Also, social support includes informational and emotional support.

Baack et al. (2000) attempted to find the personal impact of company policies through the use of social penetration theory. The paper determines the factors to be considered when examining the effects of company policies on people. It identifies individual differences as a consideration in determining the impact. The social penetration theory provides a foundation in explaining the relationship between company relationships and personal effects. It considers the aspirational, attitudinal, and behavioral responses of people to a presented institutional policy. The research found that some strategies affected individuals only in superficial ways and are limited to the expressions of the agreements.

Lastly, in a research conducted to determine the implications of superficial disclosures from friends in new communication technologies, Rains et al., (2014), applied the social penetration theory along with social exchange theories to determine the impact on personal relationships. Based on the hypotheses used, the results showed that superficial self-disclosures are negatively associated with a liking or willingness to provide social support. Also, the research findings showed that superficial disclosures are associated with the outcome as they are considered to be part of a relationship cost.

Social Phenomena using social penetration Theory

Social penetration theory can be used to explain familial relationships where people tied through blood are connected and bound by healthy relationships. It is a social phenomenon that impacts people of the same families or individuals connected through the blood. Most at times, people of the same family tend to get along well and understand one another. They have lots of information about one another and can share ideas about their feelings, opinions, and personal issues comfortably due to the bond created. Also, self-disclosure is a part of the familial relationship as the growth of the bond occurs gradually. The members introduce themselves to the other parties, and slowly, the onion theory is depicted as new information that arises in each peel. This string connection also develops fast due to the physical closeness of the individuals and the performing of activities together most of the time.

Therefore, the social penetration theory can be used to explain how familial ties occur, especially among relatives in a family. It can be applied in explaining the reasons for stronger relationship bonds between people in the same family compared to friendship and social group relationships. Also, the theory can help determine the factors to consider in the development of the ties and how it occurs between the people of the same family. This relationship includes family members having an added advantage of physical closeness, compared to the family members who are close to one another but separated by the distance. Therefore, the theory applies to explain the function of self-disclosure in developing family relationships among closely related individuals. The theory would also consider the exchanges of information and the changes in behavior that help in creating the bond while considering the background of the individuals.

The social penetration theory is based on five stages, from orientation to de-penetration. A greater understanding of the relationship can be explained through the behavior of the individuals in the familial relationships. The changes in the behaviors of the individuals through the breadths and width of the link determine the extent of the bond created. The norm of reciprocity will also explain the extent of the communications between the individuals and the kind of relationship developed. Familial relationship is a social phenomenon that occurs in many individuals’ lives; hence a deep understanding of the relationship connections can be acquired through the onion theory.

Social Penetration Theory Applied Project

The social penetration theory will be applied in designing an applied project explaining the interactions between family members and the interpersonal communication among them. The approach would create a basis for proving the development of the applied project by checking the familial interactions and individual perceptions. Familial relationships are affected by the attitude of individuals towards the other people in the family. This relationship is also affected by the exchange of information and the communication abilities of the individuals. Therefore, the theory would apply to form the basis of the relationship, through the stages of the method, to create a strong bond that exists in the families.

Using variables such as communication connectivity of the family individuals and the breadth and depth of the relationship. The connectivity of the variables will be explained by using the theory as a foundation to determine the development of the connection through the stages. Self-disclosure will be used as a measure of the personality traits, and interpersonal perceptions between the individuals as these factors can affect the relationship of the individuals. As self-disclosure may be connected to the extent of the involvement in the familial ties, communication could also be used as a measure of the perception of the individuals to the creation of the relationship. The theory provides the best framework for integrating both the breadth and depth of the familial relationships as well as the extent at which the relationships could develop to forming strong bonds between the individuals.

References

Baack, D., Fogliasso, C., & Harris, J. (2000). Journal Of Business Ethics, 24(1), 39-49. https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1006016113319Carpenter, A., & Greene, K. (2015). Social Penetration Theory. The International Encyclopedia Of Interpersonal Communication, 1-4. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118540190.wbeic160Huang, H. (2016). Examining the beneficial effects of individual’s self-disclosure on the social network site. Computers In Human Behavior, 57, 122-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.030

Mangus, S. M., Bock, D. E., Jones, E., & Folse, J. A. G. (2020). Examining the effects of mutual information sharing and relationship empathy: A social penetration theory perspective. Journal of Business Research, 109, 375-384. Doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.12.019.

Rains, S., Brunner, S., & Oman, K. (2014). Self-disclosure and new communication technologies. Journal Of Social And Personal Relationships, 33(1), 42-61. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407514562561Panos, D. (2014). “I” on the Web: Social Penetration Theory Revisited. Mediterranean Journal Of Social Sciences. https://doi.org/10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n19p185

Tang, J., & Wang, C. (2012). Self-Disclosure Among Bloggers: Re-Examination of Social Penetration Theory. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, And Social Networking, 15(5), 245-250. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2011.0403Taylor, D. (1968). The Development of Interpersonal Relationships: Social Penetration Processes. The Journal Of Social Psychology, 75(1), 79-90. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.1968.9712476