A test of the compensation and recreation hypotheses
(Original article by Jochen Peter and Patti M. Valkenburg, Amsterdam School of Communications Research, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands)
The main subject of this article is to find out who looks for casual dates on the internet and how the two aspects anonymity and controllability influence the seeking-behaviour. Two hypotheses were tested, the compensation and the recreation hypothesis. With its epistemological procedure, the quantitative study seems to be done absolutely scientific and be coherent.
First, the scientists created the two mentioned hypotheses. Afterwards they gathered information by making a computer-mediated survey in all parts of the Netherlands among 729 adults between 18 and 60 years. Further the hypotheses were tested for their correctness by comparing the results of the survey with them.
Basically, individuals may be more likely to look for casual dates on the internet depending on the importance that they give to features of online communication. Three features are developed:
- To communicate online doesn’t deserve many visual and auditory cues. People don’t have to look beautiful or talk impressively well, because between the communicating people is the computer which avoids a face-to-face date.
- The internet allows people anonymity and lacks of identifying information. Nobody has to introduce himself and can stay anonymous.
- Because of the fact that most online communications are by texting, people can reflect on their answers and have a certain amount of control what and how they “talk” with the person on the other side of the computer.
People’s searching behaviour for casual dates may depend on how important these three reasons are for them.
The result about the compensation hypothesis:
The compensation hypothesis emphasizes that people with dating anxiety or low physical self-esteem use the internet more often than people without any dating anxiety or high physical self-esteem do. So for them, the internet is probably a compensatory outlet, which lets them handle better their social problems. Dating anxiety refers to discomfort and distress in dating situations. Studies about whether socially anxious (or introverted) people do more often online dating interactions are inconsistent. Some confirm the compensation studies, others don’t.
In my opinion people with dating anxiety don’t use the internet more often than other people do, they just use it in a different way. There is certainly a huge amount of people who search causal dates on the web, their main interest is obviously finding dates and communicate with those people. They probably neglect other possibilities of the internet like getting information or buying things in online shops. Others who don’t have problems with face-to-face dating or even prefer it that way certainly don’t put much effort in finding dates online. I’m sure they use it as often as people with dating problems do, they write e-mails and communicate with friends but not with the intention to find dates. These two groups therefore use the internet for different things.
By testing the hypothesis with the results of the survey it is shown, that it confirms my assumption: dating anxiety and physical self-esteem were not associated with the frequency of using the internet for casual dates. The case was though, that they would attach more importance to the reduced cues (anonymity and controllability) of online communication. My other assumption, that there certainly is a huge amount of people who looks for casual dates online was not supported. Only less than 1 % frequently does that.
The result about the recreation hypothesis:
The recreation hypothesis proposes that sexually-permissive people and high sensation-seekers are more likely to use the internet more often than low sensation-seekers or sexually restrictive people do. For them, the internet may be just an alternative outlet to get new experiences, beside their face-to-face dates. Sexually-permissive people have more tolerant attitudes towards casual sex, sensation-seeking ones date more frequently and are more willing to go on a date with people described in online dating ads. A recent research demonstrated that because of their openness they indeed look for sexually-explicit material online more often than restrictive people do.
By surveying the test results and comparing them with the hypothesis there follows the conclusion, that the hypothesis is supported, they do indeed seek more often casual dates online and also attach more importance to anonymity of online communication than sexually-restrictive people do.
This result doesn’t come along with the assumption I had in the beginning. I totally thought that sexually-restrictive people use the internet more frequently for online dating than sexually-permissive ones do, because of their character of being restrictive and not sexually open and free. I assumed that they therefore may have secret wishes or fears which can’t be told straightforward, but on the internet which creates the necessary distance for feeling free.
The study shows what both groups have in common: seeking casual dates on the internet is for some people more effortless and comfortable than confronting them in a real face-to-face situation. It negates that dating anxious people or with low physical self-esteem use the internet for casual dates more often than others do. Interesting is, that people who are more open to new experiences and more sexually-permissive use the internet more frequently than sexually-restrictive people do. It may be a tool for them to easily get casual dates and sexual contacts.
[1] New media & society (2007), SAGE Publications Los Angeles, London, New Delhi and Singapore
