Risk and the Construction of Intimacy in Close Relationships

• In Event: 20220 - Section on Communication, Information Technology, and Media Sociology Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Section on Communication, Information Technology, and Media Sociology Roundtable V: Digital phenomena, broadly construed

Abstract

In this research, I investigate the construction and maintenance of intimacy among family members and close friends. Specifically, I ask, “how do perceptions of the world as risky affect intimate relationships?” To investigate this question, I conducted interviews with young adults who are active users of one or more apps that allow them to share their location with others. I find that the alleviation of uncertainty – especially the alleviation of uncertainty surrounding their own and their close friends’ and family members’ physical safety – is a key stated reason for using the apps. However, as participants make decisions about with whom they will share their locations, they are categorizing others based on their perceptions of their levels of intimacy with these others.

Author

• Dakota Dougherty, North Carolina State University