Page 125 - Never Too Far Away? The Roles of Social Network Sites in Sojourners’ Adjustment

isolate potential time-related confounds, especially since Facebook features and affordances, as well as other communication technologies evolve rapidly. It is also recommended for future studies to test the validity and reliability of the Facebook Relationship Support scale. Lastly, given the cross-sectional and correlational nature of this study, directionality cannot be truly established. We argued the proposed model based on well-founded theoretical expectations (Ellison et al., 2007; Felmlee, 2001; Keneski & Loving, 2014; Papacharissi & Mendelson, 2008; Utz & Breuer, 2017). However, the model testing we conducted only made it possible to see whether a set of results is consistent with a causal model. Thus, future studies should address the question of directionality/bidirectionality in their design. We recommend the use of longitudinal and experimental designs to test the validity of our findings.
Conclusions
Facebook use could be a double-edged sword for romantic relationships. Facebook use in general could have a detrimental impact on romantic relationships. However, Facebook use could be beneficial via social affordances that allow couples to maintain a network supportive of their relationship. For those in LDRR, Facebook use, via relationship support, is relatively more important for relationship stability and satisfaction compared to those in GCRR. Our study contributes to the existing literature by elucidating the complex role of SNSs in the maintenance of romantic relationships.
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