Digital and traditional communication with kin: Displacement or reinforcement?
: Danielsbacka Mirkka, Tammisalo Kristiina, Tanskanen Antti O.
Publisher: Turun yliopisto
: 2021
: INVEST Working Paper
: 33
: 2737-0534
DOI: https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/uprba
: https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/uprba
: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/68796763
A salient question in the digital era is whether new forms of digital communication (e.g., instant messages, video calls, e-mails) have displaced or reinforced more traditional forms of communication (e.g., meeting face-to-face, contact by phone, sending letters/postcards). These opposing hypotheses, i.e., digital communication as a reinforcer versus a displacer, have attracted abundant attention among scholars; however, studies have scarcely explored these hypotheses in the context of communication among kin. Using large-scale and population-based data of 1,945 young to middle-aged (18–55 year-olds) and 2,663 older (68–73 year-olds) Finns, we tested the predictions derived from the displacement and reinforcement hypotheses in several kin dyads (parent-child, grandparent-grandchild, siblings, and aunt/uncle-niece/nephew). The results strongly supported the reinforcement hypothesis in all kin dyads, and in both younger and older adults. Associations were positive even after controlling for a wide range of potentially confounding factors. Hence, it can be concluded that digital means may reinforce rather than displace traditional forms of contact.