Does Internet Use Crowd Out Face-To-Face Ties?

Does Internet Use Crowd Out Face-To-Face Ties?

Hun Myoung Park, Ph.D.University Information Technology Services

Indiana University

2023년 4월 22일

Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management

Research Conference in Washington D.C.

April 22, 2023Does Internet Use Crowd Out Face-To-Face Ties?

Outline• Television and Social Capital• The Internet and Civic Engagement• Internet Use and Face-To-Face Ties• Data and Methods• Dependent and Independent Variables• Findings• Conclusion

University Information Technology ServicesCenter for Statistical and Mathematical Computing


Television and Social Capital

• Putnam (1995): TV erodes social capital– Time displacement thesis– Mean world thesis

• Norris (1996): types of media use • Shah (1998), Moy et al. (1999)• Uslaner (1998): optimism for the future• Time for watching TV does not matter



The Internet and Civic Engagement

• Putnam (2000): skeptical view• Nie and Hillygus (2002) : negative• Shah et al. (2002): positive• Robinson et al. (2002), Wellman et al.

(2001): both negative and positive• Kraut et al. (1998) and Kraut et al.

(2002): conflicting conclusions• What happened?



The Internet and Civic Engagement• Mobilization or transformation theory• Reinforcement theory: (Davis 1999; Norris 2001)• Normalization theory: (Bimber 1999; Deli Carpini

and Keeter 2003; Margolis and Resnic 2000)• Sources of mixed results

– Diversity of civic engagement: Weissberg (2005)– Measures of Internet use: Bimber (2001), DiMaggio et

al. (2001), Norris (2000), Wellman et al. (2001)– Causality (reciprocal, virtuous circle?): DiMaggio et al.

(2001), Norris (2000), Shah (1998), Uslaner (1998)



Internet Use and Face-To-Face Ties• Putnam (2000): Limitation of the Internet

– Digital inequality (digital divide)– Less nonverbal and in-depth information– Cyberbalkanization

• Wellman et al. (2001): supplemental role• Stromer-Galley (2000): computer mediated

human interaction and media interaction• Weiser (2001): Socio-affective regulation and

goods-and-information acquisition• Zhao (2006): social and nonsocial use



Research Questions?

• Internet use crowds out face-to-face ties? • Any change in face-to-face ties over time?• Types of Internet services matter?

– Time spent for email– Time spent for WWW use

• Modes (purposes) of Internet use make any difference?– Deliberation and information – Entertainment (e.g., music, movies, games)



Data and Methods

• General Social Survey – Trend analyses (1972-2008)– Statistical Modeling (2000-2004)– Recoding problems in 2000 and 2002

data• Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) • Negative Binomial Regression Model for

the number of memberships



Dependent and Independent Variables

• Dependent Variables– Spending social evenings – People staying in contact with– The number of memberships

• Independent Variables– Types of Internet services– Modes (purposes) of Internet use– Covariates (education, family income,

gender, race, marital status, etc.)



Internet Penetration (Pew Internet)



Finding: No Change in Ties Over Time

• No change in spending social evenings with relatives, neighbors, friends

• No change in the number of friends and relatives staying in contact with

• No significant change in the number of organizations that a citizen gets involved

• No change in helpfulness, fairness, and trustworthiness as well

• No slash or jump before and after the end of the 1990s. Then…



Helpfulness, Fairness, Trust


0.2

.4.6

.81

1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008

Helpfulness FairnessTrustworthiness

Source: General Social Survey (1972-2008)


Spending Social Evening


0.2

.4.6

.81

1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008

With Relatives With NeighborsWith Friends Go To a Bar



Staying in Contact with


0.2

.4.6

.81

2000 2002 2004

Face-to-Face TelephonePostal Mail Meetings or EventsEmail



The Number of Memberships



Finding: Spending Social Evening

• Types of Internet services not matter• Modes of Internet use not matter• Education • Age• Marital status• Attendance at religious services



Spending Social Evenings



Finding: Staying in Contact with

• Email use has a positive impact • WWW has a negative effect• Positive impact of deliberative purpose• No effect of entertainment purposes• Education and attendance at religious

services are positively related• Gender (female) and race (white) have

positive effects



Staying in Contact



The Number of Membership



Finding: The Number of Memberships

• Email and overall WWW uses not matter• Deliberative use of WWW has a positive

impact• Education and attendance at religious

services are positively related.• Many zeros issue (over-dispersion)• Heavier deliberative use of WWW have

less zeros than lighter use



Conclusion• Preliminary analysis• No significant decline and increase in face-to-

face ties over times• Spending social evenings: Internet use not

matter much• Staying in contact with friends and relatives:

email use and deliberative WWW use have positive effects; as communication tools

• The number of memberships: deliberative WWW use positively related

• Any dynamics in generations? Probably not• Causality Issue




0 .5 1 1.5 2 2.5 0 .5 1 1.5 2 2.5

200820062004200220001998199619941993199119901989198819871986198519841983198219801978197719761975197419731972

200820062004200220001998199619941993199119901989198819871986198519841983198219801978197719761975197419731972

Social Evening with Relatives Social Trust

Younger than 30 30 <= Age < 40

40 <= Age < 60 Older than 60

Graphs by Social Capital



0 .5 1 1.5 2 0 .5 1 1.5 2

200820062004200220001998199619941993199119901989198819871986198519841983198219801978197719761975197419731972

200820062004200220001998199619941993199119901989198819871986198519841983198219801978197719761975197419731972

Social Evening with Neighbors Social Evening with Friends

Younger than 30 30 <= Age < 40

40 <= Age < 60 Older than 60

Graphs by Social Capital

Does Internet Use Crowd Out Face-To-Face Ties?

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