Social Information Processing (theory) - Examples

Examples

• A blind date: Imagine two people are being sent on a blind date by their friends. The date is scheduled three weeks in advance, so the friends give the two people going on the blind date each other's email addresses so they can get to know each other a little before the date. One initiates and sends the other an email, and after a couple of days they slowly begin to disclose information. Each person has the ability to carefully craft their message to the other, and to edit how much information to disclose to one another. With these initial conversations occurring over the internet, many of the initial uncertainties they have about meeting each other may be dissipated. Over the three week time period, the two people can grow close and be excited to meet each other, so when they do meet, the atmosphere will not be awkward but instead, the two people can feel like friends.

• Viral Marketing: Or “creating a process where interested people can market to each other”, is used to influence the adoption and use of products and services. Viral marketing occurs largely through CMC interpersonal influence, most commonly through online social networks. Social information-processing theory views the social network as “an important source of information and cues for behavior and action for individuals”. Compared to interpersonal communication through a face-to-face social network, the social information processing theory argues the CMC interpersonal communication of viral marketing achieves greater influence due to many factors, including: the ability to influence a large number of individuals (for example, through multiple email recipients), minimal effort to influence (in terms of reach and ease of information sharing), the ability for synchronous, as well as asynchronous communication and the ability to adopt influence strategies based on real-time feedback.