For the past several days, I have been posting on an asynchronous online forum. The forum is a fansite for a Broadway show called Spring Awakening that I’ve seen a few times and am a huge fan of. On this site, there is a particular thread for introductions, so on Saturday afternoon, I posted a little bit about myself and waited for people to respond. Out of the responses I got, I chose one person named Zoe to continue to chat with. Since we shared a passion for this Broadway show, it was easy to get carried away and discuss what actors we did and didn’t like, what scenes of the show were our favorites, and what our experiences have been like seeing it and meeting the actors.
From our short conversation, I can infer that Zoe is extroverted; I determined this based on her tendency to get more excited about topics other than herself, and the energy and enthusiasm she had towards our conversations. She was very agreeable and always willing to support my opinions and experiences with her own, and not once did I experience tension in our conversation. Zoe was also very open – she shared stories and facts about herself, and gave off an overall warm feeling. It was harder to judge her conscientiousness and neuroticism from our conversation.
My impression of Zoe clearly aligns with the hyperpersonal model, especially the over-attribution process. Since our conversation first sprung from our shared passion for this Broadway musical, I found it really easy to guess what she liked and disliked. (For example, I assumed, and then confirmed, that she liked John Gallagher Jr., musicals, and Duncan Sheik. I also assumed that she was an open-minded and thoughtful person, based on the content of the Broadway show.) It was very easy to make assumptions about Zoe despite the small amount of information I was given.
With regard to breadth and intensity, my experiences also match the hyperpersonal model perfectly. Although I still don’t know that much information about Zoe, I feel that I know her interests and her opinions very strongly. The instant bond that was formed through our shared passion made me immediately feel comfortable with her, like I was talking to an old friend. People are quick to attribute characteristics and interests to others just from one fact that they know, just like I was with Zoe; this experience has made me aware of how much people can assume about another person just from a small amount of information.
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When browsing through the blog postings for this week, I found yours to be very interesting and relevant to what we discussed in class. Getting to know someone online is a difficult task but having similar interest’s makes the impression formation of another person a bit easier. Sharing the same interest, starting the conversation probably seemed effortless and perhaps some assumptions were made before the chatting really even began. I agree with you when you say because both you and Zoe shared the same passion for a particular Broadway show, it is more likely that you are going to over exaggerate your opinions about her. Because of what you know, have seen, and have experienced personally, it’s somewhat unavoidable to use your knowledge as a base for your assumptions. With this said, the idea of stereotyped opinions come into play. With the lack of information given by Zoe and the short time in which you both conversed, your view of her will be an intense one. Also, people select certain information they wish to share with the intent of trying to please the other person so a connection is achieved. It’s so true when you say it’s relatively easy to form assumptions about someone when there’s a lack of time, information, and cues. I really enjoyed reading your post!
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