Social norms concerning online communication

There are concerns in academic circles, but also in Dutch society about the increasing use of online communication. Worries are expressed that people will lose their offline connections with each other. This article aimed at informing that discussion by researching the norms people uphold concerning their daily online behavior. A large sample of 495 respondents (12-30 years) participated in the research project. A survey incorporating vignette assignments was used to explore what kind of norms the respondents upheld. The results revealed that many respondents view specific norm violations as unacceptable, including scoffing on SNS or posting something that might reflect negatively on a friend. Another norm upheld by half of the respondents included that one should respond to an important personal message of friend. In contrast, responding to a post of a friend on SNS is clearly not considered a norm by almost all respondents. Noteworthy is that a large amount of respondents found using one’s mobile technologies while you are in a serious conversation not OK. Besides this a large percentage of the respondents indicated that they find offline communication more important that online communication. This demonstrates in a way that many respondents still valued face-to-face conversation. In line with previous research, this research also established that gender, age and peers were significant determinants in how respondents evaluate the norm violations.