Constance McCarty 1
COMM 1050
Social Information Processing Theory
From Womb to Tomb
In 1992 Joseph Walther published a paper to challenge the current theories that said
computer mediated communication (CMC) was negative. He stated in this paper that “Several
theories and much experimental research on relational tone in computer-mediated
communication (CMC) points to the lack of nonverbal cues in this channel as a cause of
impersonal and task-oriented messages. Field research in CMC often reports more positive
relational behavior.” From this paper the Social Informational Processing Theory (SIP) was born
(Walther, 1992). Walther’s theory focuses on the relationships being built through CMC even
without nonverbal cues and face to face interactions. Walther states that relationships built with
no face to face contact rely on verbal and textual cues so they will take longer to develop but
may be stronger than relationships developed through regular channels because of this extra
time. In this paper I will attempt to follow Walther’s later works on his theory to show how SIP
has evolved and applies to new advancements in technology as well as discuss the creditability
of the source. Finally I will explore if the advancement of technology and new media available
has brought this theory as far as it can go.
Walther’s theory was published in the prestigious Communication Research (CR)
journal. CR is a bimonthly peer reviewed journal that “has provided researchers and practitioners
with the most up-to-date, comprehensive and important research on communication and its
related fields” (Sage Publications, 2013). With an EJL ranking of S (Scientific refereed journals
of a recognized academic reputation) this is a very creditable source and makes the author
accountable to his peers in communication research.
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At its birth the SIP theory was developed to explain the ability for humans to adapt.
Individuals are motivated to develop social relationships regardless of the way and will create
strategies for overcoming the lack of nonverbal cues typically found in CMC mediums (Griffin,
2009). The SIP theory disagrees with other Theory’s that suggest CMC leads to
depersonalization. Back then it was mostly talking about email, chat rooms, and instant messages
(IM). Verbal and text cues were straightforward you had to interpret the writers meaning strictly
by what they said with the help of an occasional emoticon. Walther ended his paper with a note
that warned us as technology progressed so would the need for this theory.
True to his word the next article I discovered from Walther again appeared in CR in
2001. Now his accountability is even higher since all articles are published online first with links
to resources he used to verify his sources.
In 2001 the online community is growing. People are no creating personal websites to
display their personality. On these websites they post pictures which remove the barriers
previously experienced on lack of visual cues. Walther asks the question which is better a picture
or a thousand words (Walther J.B., 2001). Walther sets out to find out if the presence of pictures
for new groups promotes greater affection and social attraction and if it has anything to do with
the length of the relationship. Walther did prove in his experiment that the presence of pictures
caused attraction and affection to happen quicker but his hypothesis that the relationships would
not last as long was not supported. This led him to the conclusion that further study was needed.
In 2002 Walther spoke at the 35th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
His presentation was published in the conference proceedings. The credibility of this publication
is something each person has to decide themselves. I consider this a credible source with
accountability to his peers because based on Walther’s past publications he was invited to attend
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which means the conference board felt he was credible, and the Hawaii International Conference
on System Sciences is one of the longest standing scientific conferences of today. The reasons
this may not be as credible as say a journal article is the fact that the invitation is based on the
speaker’s reputation and not the article itself and that most of his cited sources are of himself
may leave some doubt.
In his presentation Walther discusses the pros and cons of asynchronous video
communication. He discusses how different people benefit from the different forms of
teleconferencing. He says text-based conferencing was supposed to “level the playing field” for
people with different appearances, and predicts that video conferencing will do the same for
those with spelling, and written grammar disadvantages. He argues that “asynchronicity allow
message receivers to examine and re-examine the underlying substance of a partner’s arguments,
rather than be swayed or distracted by the video-conveyed charisma that full-channel
communication can impel in a real-time encounter” (J. Watt, 2002). Walther also gives us a hint
that he sees this subject getting too big for any theory when he closes with “Numerous questions-theoretical, practical, and philosophical--arise when communication will break further through
linear time and space.”
My final analysis on where SIP has ended up and what its future will be comes from two
resources. The first one is from the Journal of Language and Social Psychology. This is the only
major journal worldwide devoted to the social psychology of language. The journal itself is
creditable because it is the only one of its kind so everyone in this field reads and submits to it
however the article itself is rather unique. Walther isn’t submitting a typical scientific scholarly
article with studies, as much as he is analyzing and contemplating on what he has learned in his
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studies. I feel this is an important source all the same because it shows the Walther sees his
theory as migrating from communication to psychological with the new developments in CMC.
Walther feels that the advancements in the media that people are using call into question
most theories in the CMC area. He states that “The tenability of even recent theories such as
social information processing, social identification/deindividuation, and hyperpersonal models of
CMC are subject to debate as social media change the attributes of CMC and the nature of the
adaptations and exploitations of media that users make.” He also goes on to say we should also
question the dynamics of uncertainty reduction and communication accommodation (Walther,
2012). He does not speak of this as a loss but more as an exciting progression and as with
everything needs more study but in a new direction. In his comment “Ultimately, the most
interesting lessons from technology will be to learn what it is that communication itself needs in
order to function” he guides us in the direction he thinks it should take.
The last resource I will use is one of extreme credibility since it is read by the future
theorists of communication, us. I will use the new edition of our textbook. Nothing shows the
direction of a theory more than what changes take place when a new version of a textbook comes
out. The most important thing to note is that the SIP theory is still in it unlike other social
theories like Social Exchange Theory, and Social Learning Theory which tells us it is still a
relevant theory for now. There is also a new section added to the theory on warranting the value
of information added to address sites such as Facebook where the user does not have sole control
of the information (Griffin, 2012). Walther feels this makes the information more creditable.
Griffin goes onto say that advances in social media has imposed limits on how far this theory can
go but it still holds true to the criteria of what makes a good communication theory. Walther does
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not agree with Griffin and thinks that there is “a weakness apparent in the social information
processing perspective is that it has not allowed for differences in the affiliation drive.”
As I really dug into this theory I think I am with Griffin’s opinion on Social Information
Processing Theory. This theory has stood strong in a field that changes daily. As new media
comes out the theory still applies on some level. It may be too narrow to hold all of the
advancements but there is room for pieces of each that are important enough to sustain this
theory for the long haul.
Throughout this paper we have followed Walther’s SIP theory from the beginning, with
all its twist and turns, and up to now. New social media and technology develops faster than the
studies of their effects can be produced but Sip is always the starting point of analyzing these
effects. This makes it not only the standard for new theories to develop but the base of our
understanding up to this point. Everyone from ad agencies to psychologists use what we know
about the emotional drives to connect discovered in Walther’s theory to try and understand the
motives of the people using the sites. I do not think SIP is going away anytime soon. It will just
adapt and discover new meanings behind the basic human need to connect and build
relationships no matter what obstacles come up.
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References
Griffin, E. (2009). A First Look at Communication Theory 7th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Griffin, E. (2012). A First Look at Communication 8th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.
J. Watt, J. W. (2002). Asynchronous Videoconferencing: A Hybrid Communication Prototype.
Proceedings of the 35th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, (pp. 97105).
Sage Publications. (2013). Sage Journals. Sage Publication.
Walther J.B., C. S. (2001). Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? : Photographic Images in Long-Term
and Short-Term Computer-Mediated Communication. Communication Research vol.28 no. 1,
105-134.
Walther, J. (1992). Interpersonal Effects in Computer-Mediated Interaction A Relational Perspective.
Communication Research vol.19, 1, 52-90.
Walther, J. (2012). Interaction Through Technological Lenses : Computer-Mediated Communication and
Language. Journal of Language and Social Psychology vol. 31 no. 4, 397-414.