In the flurry of messages college students post on one another's Facebook pages, social scientists see something larger at work: Time spent online may be helping people learn to be more empathetic and make more friends in real life.
A growing body of research indicates the widespread use of texting, emailing or posting on social-media sites has social benefits. The studies fly in the face of the image of a child sitting lonely in front of a computer, or being bullied online.
Several recent studies have found that digital communication can lead to more or better friendships online and off, greater honesty, faster intimacy in relationships and an increased sense of belonging, in addition to practical social benefits like an expanded circle for networking.
On the whole, technology appears to enhance real-world relationships, says Nancy Baym, a communication-studies professor at the
Some studies show technology-driven communication may be particularly helpful for people who are shy or anxious in social settings. These researchers concentrated on the psychological impact of intensive social online communication, not the role it plays in mass gatherings.
In a study of New York University students who described themselves as either socially anxious or non-anxious, participants were randomly assigned to interact in groups of three, either in-person or through an Internet chat room. Anxious students reported greater shyness and discomfort than non-anxious students in face-to-face groups. In the chat room, however, they said they felt significantly less shy, more comfortable and better accepted by their peers.
In a follow-up study, researchers randomly assigned high- and low-anxiety students to groups of four to interact in an online chat room or face to face. Socially anxious participants were more likely to make decisions and lead the group when they were in the chat room than when face-to-face with others. Other group members said they found the anxious participants more likeable and extroverted when the interaction occurred online. In the face-to-face situation, the non-anxious participants were the ones seen as leaders.
Frequent communication online could serve as practice for in-person social interactions, says Larry Rosen, a psychology professor at
Dr. Rosen and his team were especially curious about empathy, because it is so frequently communicated nonverbally via facial expressions and body language. The researchers informally scanned dozens of Facebook profiles, looking for comments that individuals posted and the responses to them that appeared to show understanding of the original posters' feelings, such as supportive messages to a friend who said her mother was having surgery the next day.
These messages suggested that empathy could indeed be recognized and communicated through written, online communication. This inspired the researchers to investigate how this related to the expression of empathy in real life.
In a study presented earlier this month at the annual American Psychological Association conference in Washington, D.C., they asked 1,283 people aged 18 to 30 through a series of questionnaires how much time they spent online, and the degree to which they felt empathetic toward offline and online friends. For instance, participants were asked to rate on a five-point scale how well they could understand a friend's happiness when the friend did something well. They were then asked the same questions regarding friends with whom a majority of their communication was done online through social networking or email.
Based on participants' self-reports, the researchers found users expressed a significant amount of empathy online, and that the more time college students spent on Facebook, the more empathy they expressed online and in real life.
As with any novel research, these preliminary findings need to be repeated in future studies, particularly since self-reported data can be skewed if participants inaccurately recall or misreport their feelings.
Digital communication also appears to bolster individuals' sense of community and group identity, says Nicole Ellison, a professor in telecommunications, information studies and media at
And some of the drawbacks of online communication may not be as widespread as feared, researchers are finding. While online bullying is a concern, in-person bullying remains far more prevalent.
In a survey of 3,777 teenagers, nearly 45% reported some bullying in the past year. But of those who said they were bullied, nearly 40% said it had occurred in person. Fewer than 20% said it had occurred -- solely or in addition to other bullying methods -- online, by phone or by text messaging, says Michele Ybarra, president of nonprofit research group Internet Solutions for Kids Inc., who ran the survey. And two-thirds of kids who say they are bullied online say they don't find it upsetting, according to a new study by Dr. Ybarra that she expects will be published soon in the journal Pediatrics.
And young people are still far more likely to see sexual content or violence on television than online, she says.
虚拟空间让人更友善？
从大学生们在彼此的Facebook网页上发表的海量帖子中，社会学家们看到了一种重要现象：网上花费的时间可以帮助人们学会在现实生活中更懂得换位思考，交更多的朋友。
越来越多的研究结果表明，大量使用短信、电邮或在社交媒体网站发帖在社交方面是有益处的。这些研究报告跟以往我们头脑中一个孩子孤独地坐在电脑前或者在网上被欺负的印象正好相反。
几项近期的研究报告发现，除了一些现实的社交方面的益处如扩大关系网之外，数字通信可以让人在线上线下拥有更多更好的友情，在人际关系中更诚实、更快地与人亲近，而且增强归属感。
位于劳伦斯（Lawrence）的堪萨斯大学（University of Kansas）的传媒研究教授南希•拜姆（Nancy Baym）说，总的来看，科技似乎是进一步强化了真实世界的人际关系，原因是人们使用数字通信手段主要是和线下最亲密的人而不是和陌生人互动。拜姆博士和她的同事于2009年在《信息、传播与社会》（Information, Communication & Society）杂志上发表了研究报告，称数字通信拉紧了人们之间的联系。
有些研究结果显示，科技驱动的交流对那些在社交场合害羞或紧张的人特别有帮助。这些研究人员关注的是密集的在线社交沟通所产生的心理影响，而非大型聚会对人的心理影响。
在对纽约大学（New York University）学生的一项调查中，学生们有的自认为有社交焦虑，有的则没有。参与这项调查的学生被随机分为三组进行面对面或通过互联网聊天室的互动。在面对面互动小组中，有社交焦虑的学生比没有社交焦虑的学生更为羞涩和不安，然而在聊天室中，他们觉得害羞程度大大减轻，感觉更自在，更为同龄人所接受。
在后续调查中，研究人员把高度焦虑和低度焦虑的学生随机分为四组通过网络聊天室或面对面进行互动，有社交焦虑的参与者在聊天室里比面对面与人互动时更可能做决定及领导所在小组。其他小组成员说，他们发现有焦虑问题的参与者在线上互动时更加可爱和外向。在面对面互动的情况下，被视作领导者的都是没有社交焦虑的参与者。
加州州立大学多明戈斯山分校（California State University, Dominguez Hills）的心理学教授拉里•罗森（Larry Rosen）说，频繁的在线交流可以充当当面社交互动的试练。
罗森教授和他的团队对于人们对他人处境感同身受的现象特别感兴趣，因为它常常是通过面部表情和肢体语言等非语言方式传达的。研究人员粗略地浏览了Facebook上的几十个个人主页，寻找人们发表的帖子及那些对原帖作者的感受表现出理解的跟帖。例如一名女子说她的母亲将在第二天做手术，她的网友们就会在帖子中留下支持的话。
这些帖子说明对他人处境的感同身受的确可以通过书面的在线交流来体认和表达，这就促使研究人员去调查这种现象与现实生活中人们的表达有怎样的联系。
八月初在华盛顿召开的美国心理学会（American Psychological Association）年度大会上提交的一份研究报告中，研究人员在一系列问卷调查中询问1283名年龄在18至30岁的人花多长时间上网，以及他们对线下线上的朋友的感觉的感受程度。例如，参加调查的人被要求给自己按五分制打分，以形容当他们的朋友因为有什么好事而快乐时，他们能够在多大程度上理解这种快乐。之后，有关那些主要通过社交网络或电子邮件做在线交流的朋友，他们又被问了同样的问题。
根据参加者的自陈，研究人员发现网民在互联网上表达了大量的对他人情感的感同身受，大学生们在Facebook网站上花的时间越多，他们在网上和现实生活中所表达的对他人情感的感同身受就越多。
与任何新奇的研究一样，这些初步发现需要在未来的研究中反复印证，尤其是如果参加调查的人不准确地回忆或错误地报告了他们的感觉，自陈数据有可能是有偏差的。
位于东兰辛（East Lansing）的密歇根州立大学（Michigan State University）的电子通讯、信息研究及媒体教授尼可•艾利森（Nicole Ellison）说，数字通讯似乎还能增强个体在社群和团体中的认同感。艾利森教授在一份2007年发表在《电脑中介传播杂志》（Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication）上的研究报告中指出，自称自信心较差的学生当中，那些积极使用Facebook网站的人，比起不大积极上Facebook网站的学生更可能会表示他们对密歇根州立大学有归属感。
研究人员发现，在线交流产生的一些弊病可能不像人们所担心的那样广泛，尽管网络欺凌是个令人担忧的问题，但是当面欺辱人的现象更为普遍。
非营利研究团体Internet Solutions for Kids Inc.的总裁米歇尔•亚巴拉（Michele Ybarra）组织了一次针对3777名青少年的调查，将近45%的受调查者报称在过去一年内受过欺负，而那些说自己被欺负的孩子们当中，将近40%的人说欺辱行为是当面发生的，不到20%的人表示欺辱行为（单独或者与其他手段一起）发生在线上、或通过电话或通过短信。根据亚巴拉博士的最新研究报告，自称在网上受过欺负的孩子们当中，有三分之二的人表示他们并未觉得这种事令人苦恼。亚巴拉博士预计这份报告不久将在《儿科》（Pediatrics）杂志上发表。
亚巴拉博士说，年轻人在电视上比在网络上更有可能看到性或暴力的内容。
整理：潘钦宇