Social information processing theory, also known as SIP, is a psychological and sociological theory originally developed by Salancik and Pfeffer in 1978. This theory explores how individuals make decisions and form attitudes in a social context, often focusing on the workplace. It suggests that people rely heavily on the social information available to them in their environments, including input from colleagues and peers, to shape their attitudes, behaviors, and perceptions. Joseph Walther reintroduced the term into the field of interpersonal communication and media studies in 1992. In this work, he constructed a framework to explain online interpersonal communication without nonverbal cues and how people develop and manage relationships in a computer-mediated environment. Walther argued that online interpersonal relationships may demonstrate the same or even greater relational dimensions and qualities (intimacy) as traditional face-to-face (FtF) relationships. However, due to the limited channel and information, it may take longer to achieve than FtF relationships. These online relationships may help facilitate interactions that would not have occurred face-to-face due to factors such as geography and intergroup anxiety.
Overview
Origins The term Social Information Processing Theory was originally titled by Salancik and Pfeffer in 1978. They stated that individual perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors are shaped by information cues, such as values, work requirements, and expectations from the social environment, beyond the influence of individual dispositions and traits. Later, they renamed their theory to the Social Influence model. At the start of the 1990s, after the advent of the Internet and the World Wide Web, interest grew in studying how the Internet impacted the ways people communicate with each other. Joseph Walther, a communication and media theorist, said that computer-mediated communication (CMC) users can adapt to this restricted medium and use it effectively to develop close relationships. Walther understood that describing the new nature of online communication required a new theory. Social information processing theory focuses on the social processes that occur when two or more people are engaged in communication, similar to theories such as social presence theory, social penetration theory, and uncertainty reduction theory. What makes SIP different from these theories is its distinct focus on communication mediated solely by information and communications technologies. While other media theories exist, such as media richness theory and uses and gratifications theory, SIP specifically focuses on relationships entirely mediated online.
The cues filtered-out theories Unlike some theories that are rooted in other theoretical perspectives from various fields of study (e.g., Communication Accommodation Theory), SIP was conceptualized, in part, by addressing the shortcomings of other theories that addressed communication mediums. These theories are termed cues filtered-out theories. Cues filtered-out theories refer to theories that address the lack of nonverbal cues as being detrimental to online relationship development. Before Social Information Processing, many theorists believed that the lack of nonverbal cues would hinder the process of forming impressions and communicating accurately. They found that norms for interactions would be unclear via social networking sites. Moreover, these theorists believed that these communication blips would cause hostile communication and create a weak environment for relationship building. Walther's research critiqued past methodological and conceptual problems with theoretical thinking. Walther states that often, online communication feels cold and impersonal, yet so can FtF. But, with this, Walther challenges past theorists by stating that, yes, online communication can be warm. Walther believes that the loss of nonverbal cues is not inherently fatal to defining our impression of others, unlike previous theorists believe. He subsequently worked toward establishing an interpersonal communication theory that more accurately reflected the intersection among communication, online environments, the self, and relationships. Two of these theoretical perspectives that influenced Walther's theory are social presence theory (SPT) and media richness theory (MRT). Walther believes that both SPT and MRT suffer from a limited understanding of relational life online. He argues that if interactants communicate enough times and with sufficient breadth and depth, nonverbal communication does not remain paramount in relationship development.
Forms of Self One of the most important aspects of online interaction is the presentation of Self. In 1987, Tory Higgins developed the self-discrepancy theory, and described three main forms of self: actual self, ideal self, and ought self. Actual self is the set of qualities and characteristics that a person actually possesses, the ideal self contains the attributes that a person hopes to someday achieve, and the ought self contains the attributes that a person believes he or she should possess. Higgins also explored the inconsistencies between them and found they are associated with emotional discomforts (e.g., fear, threat, restlessness). Carl Rogers (1951) posited that there was another form of self, one that is not concerned with the future like the ideal and ought self. He called it the true self: a present form of self that exists psychologically and is not always fully expressed within social settings like the actual self. Bargh, McKenna, and Fitzsimons (2002) conducted an experiment to test how the actual self and true self are expressed by people in face-to-face and computer-mediated interactions. Bargh et al. found that the actual self was more accessible following an initial face-to-face interaction, while the true self was more accessible following an initial interaction online. From the results of their study, the researchers concluded that people tend to like each other better when they meet online instead of meeting face-to-face. These selves are manifested and are of particular importance in online conversations and relationships, allowing an individual to manage his or her online persona or identity.
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