Emotional support during times of stress: Can text messaging compete with in-person interactions?

Abstract

There has been a recent and dramatic surge in the popularity of text messaging as a means of connecting with our social networks. The current research represents the first randomized controlled studies to directly compare both the social and emotional impact of social support provided in-person versus through text messaging. In two lab-based experiments, emerging adults completed a stressful task and were randomly assigned to receive emotional support either in-person, via text messaging, or no support at all. Support was provided by a close friend in experiment 1 (n = 64), and by a similar-aged confederate in experiment 2 (n = 188). In both experiments, in-person support was associated with significantly higher positive affect compared to text messaging. In-person support also led to greater satisfaction with support, but only in experiment 2. Overall, this research suggests that there may be emotional costs to a reliance on digital forms of social communication during times of stress.