Taiwanese Adolescents’ Self-Disclosures on Private Section of Facebook, Trusts in and Intimacy with Friends in Different Close Relationships

Abstract

The study investigates self-disclosure by adolescents in Taiwan on the private section of Facebook, and their trust in, and intimacy with, Facebook friends in different close relationships. This study further determines the predictors of intimate self-disclosure that are mediated by trust in Facebook friends. In total, 1370 Taiwanese adolescents, via stratified random cluster sampling, filled out the validated questionnaire between March and May 2013. One-way repeated measures analysis of variance and structural equation modeling were applied to analyze data on self-disclosure, intimacy, and trust, respectively, among five levels of Facebook friends. The study demonstrates that as the closeness of friends' increases, the amount of self-disclosure, intimacy, and trust increases. Additionally, the level of self-disclosure can predict the level of intimacy with Facebook friends. Adolescents' trust in friends in close relationships may strengthen the development of intimacy; however, there is no such reaction in the group of unfamiliar Facebook friends.

Revealing the self in a digital world: A systematic review of adolescent online and offline self-disclosure

“…Twelve (63%) of the studies included in the review explored the association between relationship quality and adolescent self-disclosure. All of these studies proposed that adolescent self-disclosure improves relationship quality as it builds trust between peers 24 – 36 . For adolescents, self-disclosure indicates a commitment to the peer and to the relationship with the peer 31 , strengthening it and leading to more reciprocal friendships 34 .…”