UNDERSTANDING THE IMAGINARY AUDIENCE AND THE PERSONAL FABLE

IN A SOCIAL MEDIA ENVIRONMENT

BY

DREW P. CINGEL

A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of

WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

for the Degree of

MASTER OF ARTS

Communication

May 2012

Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Approved By:

Marina Krcmar, Ph.D, Advisor

Ananda Mitra, Ph.D, Chair

Dustin Wood, Ph.D

 UMI Number: 1512682

All rights reserved

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a note will indicate the deletion.

UMI 1512682
Copyright 2012 by ProQuest LLC.
All rights reserved. This edition of the work is protected against
unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code.

ProQuest LLC.
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P.O. Box 1346
Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346
 UMI Number: 1512682

All rights reserved

INFORMATION TO ALL USERS

The quality of this reproduction is dependent on the quality of the copy submitted.

In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript
and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed,
a note will indicate the deletion.

UMI 1512682
Copyright 2012 by ProQuest LLC.
All rights reserved. This edition of the work is protected against
unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code.

ProQuest LLC.
789 East Eisenhower Parkway
P.O. Box 1346
Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There are a number of people who have made this project a possibility. First, I

would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Marina Krcmar, for opening up her life to my near-

constant questions, interruptions, and bad jokes, while providing me with excellent help

and guidance, both for this project and for my future career. She is a wonderful mentor

and I am deeply appreciative of the help and guidance she has provided me over the past

two years. Second, I would like to thank the other members of my thesis committee, Dr.

Ananda Mitra and Dr. Dustin Wood, for their input and help throughout this process.

Additionally, a special thanks to the Department of Communication Faculty for their

comments and suggestions on this project, specifically Dr. Steve Giles, Dr. Al Louden,

and Dr. Michael Hazen. Next, I would like to thank my parents, Peg Shuffstall and Ray

Cingel, for providing (through their support and funding!) every opportunity for me to

further my schooling. And finally, to NanNan, for showing me the transformative power

of education. Thank you.

ii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements ii

List of Illustrations and Tables v

List of Abbreviations vi

Abstract vii

Chapter 1: Introduction 1

Chapter 2: Literature Review 5

Adolescent Egocentrism 5

Early Conceptualization and Research 6

The Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable: A New Look 8

Contemporary Research 10

Imaginary Audience and Social Networking Sites 13

The Imaginary Audience and Facebook: Comparison 14

Imaginary Audience and the Media Super-Peer: Cognitive Change 16

Imaginary Audience and Behavioral Rehearsal: Behavioral Change 18

Personal Fable and Social Networking Sites 21

Chapter 3: Method 25

Participants 25

Private and Public Self-Consciousness 27

Facebook Usage 28

Facebook Customization 28

Theoretical Mechanism: Behavioral Rehearsal 29

New Imaginary Audience Scale 29

iii
 New Personal Fable Scale 30

Procedure 31

Chapter 4: Results 33

Chapter 5: Discussion 49

Theoretical and Practical Implications 55

Limitations 58

Directions for Future Research 59

References 61

Curriculum Vita 66

iv
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND TABLES

Figure 1 38

Figure 2 39

Table 1 40

Figure 3 41

Figure 4 42

Figure 5 43

Figure 6 48

v
 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AS Abiding Self

IAS Imaginary Audience Scale

NIAS New Imaginary Audience Scale

NPFS New Personal Fable Scale

TS Transient Self

vi
 ABSTRACT

Current research has found evidence for the emergence of Adolescent

Egocentrism in later ages than previously thought. This current study sought to extend

this contemporary understanding of adolescent egocentrism by providing a possible

alternative explanation for the reemergence of adolescence in young adults. The high rate

of Facebook use among young people has necessitated an examination of social network

usage among children and adolescents under the auspices of developmental theory. Thus,

this research study examined the relationship between Facebook use, customization, and

developmental constructs associated with Adolescent Egocentrism; namely, Imaginary

Audience and the Personal Fable. Developmental theory, however, cannot account for

differences between Facebook users in older age ranges. Therefore, this study also

examined the relationship between Facebook use, customization, and the trait variable of

self-consciousness among adults. Through this examination of both trait and

developmental variables, this research study examined Facebook with a sample ranging

in age from 9-78. Results suggest a relationship between Facebook use and heightened

Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable. Taking the results together, the authors forward

a theoretical model to explain the cycle from Facebook use to Imaginary Audience and

back to Facebook use. Theoretical implications for the future study of Facebook use,

specific Facebook usage behaviors, and developmental variables are discussed.

vii
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Due to the recent explosion of internet technologies, specifically social

networking sites such as Myspace or Facebook, a growing amount of research is being

conducted on the effects of such social media technologies across a variety of populations

(Whitlock, Powers, & Eckenrode, 2006). It is important to consider, however, the effects

of these technologies on those who use them most often; adolescents (Lenhart, Rainie, &

Lewis, 2001). Recent studies examining adolescent usage of these technologies have

found that more than 90% of all 12-17 year-olds use the Internet (Lenhart, Purcell, Smith,

& Zickuhr, 2010). Also, adolescents use the internet for primarily social activities and

spend an average six and a half hours per day online (Roberts, Foehr, & Rideout, 2005);

research has shown that 73% of adolescent Internet users spend their time on social

networking sites and use these sites to communicate with others (Lenhart, et al., 2010).

Despite the vast amount of time spent online by adolescents, however, little

research has been done to examine the interaction between adolescent development and

use of social networking sites (Wartella, Caplovitz, & Lee, 2004). Specifically, this study

will examine the relationship between Facebook use and adolescent egocentrism; namely,

the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable (Elkind, 1967), two sub-constructs of

adolescent egocentrism that refer to the belief that others are thinking about and judging

you at all times (Imaginary Audience) and the corresponding belief that, if others are

thinking about you all the time, you are special, unique, and one-of-a-kind (Personal

Fable). Adolescence is a time when individuals develop enhanced egocentrism, that is,

they assume that others are thinking about them. During this age, adolescents are hyper-
1
critical; therefore they think that others are as obsessed with their appearance as they are.

This belief of others preoccupation comprises the idea of adolescent egocentrism. At the

same time that adolescents begin to develop egocentrism, they also begin to use social

networking sites at higher rates, illustrating the importance of understanding the

relationship between social network usage and adolescent egocentrism.

Before considering these developmental phases specific to adolescent egocentrism

though, it is important to understand the attributes specific to Facebook which make it

applicable to this research study. Since its inception in 2004, the social networking site

Facebook has grown exponentially, adding its 500 millionth user in June of 2010

(Zuckerberg, 2008). Although the studies cited in this paper generally refer to research

conducted in the United States, it should be noted that Facebook use has become

international in scope and is similarly popular among adolescents throughout the world

(boyd & Ellison, 2008; Livingstone, 2008). It also has become an important part of

adolescents daily lives, changing the way that they communicate and interact with their

friends and acquaintances (Whitlock, Powers, & Eckenrode, 2006). Over the past two

years, adolescent usage of Facebook has increased by 149% (Corbett, 2010). Of

particular note to this study, Facebook allows its users to create online profiles which are

shared with the rest of the Facebook community. These profiles allow users to share

content, such as pictures and personal information, with other members. Users can send

messages, chat with friends, join groups, and meet others who share similar interests.

Importantly, from viewing the content of other members of their online circle,

adolescents are able to gain an idea of the social norms that operate not only within this

online community, but within their own group of online friends. In all, Facebook

2
provides a forum for adolescents to create an online self; here, children have the

opportunity to closely monitor what others can see and know about them. In addition, by

knowing the normative behaviors of their online community, adolescents are able to

tailor their profile to what they think others may find most attractive or likeable. These

attributes are important to note while considering the relationship between Facebook use

and adolescent egocentrism.

Previous research has mainly focused on the relationship between adolescent

internet usage and social and emotional factors. For example, Heitner (2002) found that

adolescents who use the Internet to connect with others possessed better social skills than

those who primarily used the Internet for solitary purposes. Also, Suzuki and Calzo

(2004) found that online exchanges can help to alleviate social isolation among

adolescents. As mentioned above, however, little research has been done on examining

the relationship between online activity, such as social networking, and processes specific

to adolescent egocentrism. This is of great importance, due to the significance of

interpersonal relationships at this age and the affordances Facebook allows for the

creation and maintenance of these relationships. During adolescence, children attempt to

maintain close ties to similar others in an effort to deal with increasing separation from

their parents (Vartanian, 1997). Thus, we may see the great utility of Facebook, as it

allows adolescents to more easily keep a connection with their friends.

As referenced above, Facebook provides a myriad of customization options,

allowing all users to monitor and change the way they present themselves to others such

that they may create an online social identity. Since adolescents are obsessed with the

thought that others might be examining their every move during this phase, Facebook

3
may exert a great influence on the developmental creation and duration of the Imaginary

Audience and the Personal Fable, as adolescents customize their profile to create what we

argue is a perfected online self. This, however, is merely the first step. As will be laid out

in detail later in this paper, we argue that Facebook usage can be seen as initiating a

process where Facebook is lived by the user both online and off. The user interprets

and compares themselves to the norms present within the online community. They

customize and construct their Facebook page to reflect their identity or their wished-for

identity as operating within these norms, play acting to an unseen audience. They take

these norms offline, changing behaviors to reflect their online self, constantly monitoring

themselves based on what they think others are thinking about them. This cycle, in turn,

is then taken back online to Facebook, where it begins anew. Thus, these attributes of

Facebook makes it a natural forum to examine in terms of the process of adolescent

egocentrism.

4
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

Adolescent Egocentrism

Described by Piaget (1952), egocentrism concerns the lack of differentiation in an

area of subject-object interaction. This developmental phenomenon progresses across

four stages during a childs life, from the moment of birth to adolescence. Of particular

note to this research is adolescent egocentrism, as it occurs at the same time that an

adolescent may begin to use the Internet and social networking sites; between ages 13

and 15. By this age, adolescents have acquired formal operational thought; that is, they

are able to conceptualize their thoughts and the thoughts of others (Elkind, 1967). While

this frees the adolescent of the egocentrism of the previous phase of development,

concrete operational egocentrism, it ensnares the adolescent in a new form of

egocentrism; that of adolescence. While the adolescent may be able to think about his or

her own thoughts and the thoughts of others, they are less likely to differentiate the object

to which others thoughts are directed (Elkind, 1967). For example, an adolescent may

opt not to attend a party if they notice a stain on their shirt or pants because they feel that

others will not only notice, but be unable to look away throughout the duration of the

party. Since they themselves are obsessed with the stain on their pants, and cannot

distinguish the object of their thoughts from the thoughts of others, they assume that

others in the room will think solely about the stain on their pants, and think about nothing

else.

5
The Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable: Early Conceptualization and Research

Internal to adolescent egocentrism is the idea of the Imaginary Audience. Due to

the self-consciousness of adolescents during this age, children anticipate the reactions of

others on themselves (Elkind, 1967). Therefore, adolescents continually act and react to

this contrived Imaginary Audience. It is important to note, though, that this is not always

a critical audience; it can be admiring as well. The construction of this audience accounts

for a number of actions during adolescence. Specifically, the Imaginary Audience plays a

role in what is seen as the self-consciousness and exuberance of adolescence (Elkind,

1967). It should be noted here, however, that the Imaginary Audience is seen as a

phenomenon which follows a certain developmental trajectory, whereas self-

consciousness is a relatively stable, trait-based variable. Elkind (1967) further identifies a

complement to the imaginary audience. Considered an over differentiation of a childs

own internal feelings, the Personal Fable occurs when a child comes to view him or

herself as something special or unique (Elkind, 1967). By continuously reacting to the

perceived Imaginary Audience, which is constantly viewing and thinking about the child,

they come to feel important and perhaps omnipotent. Elkind (1967) goes on to describe

this idea as a kind of a perceived immortality, a perceived uniqueness that cannot be

understood by anyone other than the child.

Later research by Elkind and Bowen (1979) further clarified the Imaginary

Audience and created the first Imaginary Audience Scale (IAS) by adding the concepts of

the abiding and the transient self. This was done in order to differentiate this scale from

previously used measures of this concept, such as the Self-Consciousness Scale used by

Simmons, Rosenberg, & Rosenberg (1973), which is a measure of a trait variable that is

6
not considered to be developmental. According to Elkind (1978), the abiding self (AS)

consists of ones long-lived characteristics, whereas the transient self (TS) consists of

behaviors the individual does not believe to be representative of their true self, such as

momentary appearances. These two constructs were combined to form the IAS, a 12-item

scale consisting of 6 items measuring both the abiding self and the transient self. Tests of

this scale conducted by Elkind and Bowen (1979) found that 8th graders scored

significantly higher on the IAS than 4th, 6th, and 12th graders, yielding support for the idea

that construction of the Imaginary Audience is tied with the development of formal

operational thought (Elkind & Bowen, 1979). In addition, as formal operational thought

continued to develop within the adolescent, scores on the IAS decreased, suggesting that

the creation of the Imaginary Audience occurs during early adolescence. It is also

important to note that tests of this scale found that girls scored significantly higher than

boys. Scores on the AS and the TS scales were found to have low correlation, indicating

that these are two separate constructs of the Imaginary Audience.

It must be noted, however, that research on Adolescent Egocentrism, the

Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable has progressed and changed dramatically

from the time these concepts were first studied. According to Lapsley, FitzGerald, Rice,

& Jackson (1989), research on these concepts has undergone three distinct phases. The

first phase, as illustrated above, was concerned with the operationalization of Elkinds

Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable constructs (Elkind & Bowen, 1979; Lapsley et

al., 1989); here, evidence was generally supportive. As indicated above, the Imaginary

Audience and the Personal Fable were originally conceived as being parts of Adolescent

Egocentrism theoretically brought about by the development of formal operational

7
thought (Elkind, 1967). Here, research is somewhat less uniform. A partial replication

study by Gray & Hudson (1984) found that, while girls scores were higher than boys, in

support of Elkind & Bowen (1979), AS and TS scores were not highest for children in the

early stages of formal operational thought, in contrast to what was predicted and shown

by Elkind and Bowen (1979) as well as AS and TS replication research conducted by

Adams and Jones (1981). In their discussion, Gray and Hudson (1984) suggest changes to

the AS and TS subscales in order to clarify the Imaginary Audience as a construct as well

as to better understand its operationalization. These authors also suggest that the

Imaginary Audience may not be linked to the development of formal operational thought.

This push led to the third phase of Imaginary Audience Research; that of attempting to

find an alternative theory for the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable.

The Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable: A New Look

The previous discussion serves to show the progression of adolescent egocentrism

from a component of cognitive development to a component of a social-cognitive identity

development, specifically dealing with separation-individuation concerns. This research,

led by Lapsley and colleagues (see Lapsley, 1985; Lapsley et al., 1989; Lapsley, 1993;

Lapsley & Murphy, 1985; Lapsley & Rice, 1988), sought to develop what has been called

a new look of the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable. In this new look, these

constructs of adolescent egocentrism are theoretically understood not as a by-product of

the development of formal operational thought as predicted by Elkind (1967) and Elkind

and Bowen (1979), but as part of the separation-individuation process of adolescence,

where children seek to balance their own needs from those of their parents (Lapsley,

1993). Here, children seek to individuate themselves by formulating their own identity

8
and renegotiating the relationship they have with their parents. According to Blos (1962),

adolescents must accomplish two tasks during this process; they must maintain a hold on

interpersonal relations through object relational ideation and maintain a hold on the self

by creating a self-observing ego (pg. 98). To Blos (1962), object relational ideation

referred to private interpersonal fantasies that an adolescent has with others. This was

later re-conceptualized as the Imaginary Audience by Elkind (1967). The self-observing

ego results in what Blos (1962) called internal perceptions of the self, or what Elkind

(1967) called the Personal Fable. In this new look, Lapsley (1993) argues that the

ability of adolescents to conceptualize themselves from a third-person point of view

allows them to predict how they are viewed by others, and gives them the efficacy

necessary to create an Imaginary Audience. Further, the presence of the self-observing

ego allows adolescents to create a Personal Fable.

Upon offering a measurement scales for a measure of this new look of

adolescent egocentrism, the New Imaginary Audience Scale (NIAS) and the New

Personal Fable Scale (NPFS), Lapsley et al. (1989) found the Imaginary Audience was

positively correlated with separation-individuation concerns, such as separation anxiety,

engulfment anxiety, and interpersonal enmeshment. In contrast, the Personal Fable was

positively correlated to self-centeredness and negatively related to separation anxiety

(Lapsley et al., 1989). In sum, these new scales of the Imaginary Audience and the

Personal Fable correlated with a number of aspects of separation-individuation, providing

evidence for the theoretical fit of the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable under

the this stage of adolescent development. These findings have since been nearly perfectly

replicated by Vartanian (1997). Overall, interpersonal concerns were related to the

9
Imaginary Audience whereas individualistic concerns were related to the Personal Fable.

Similar to the findings of Elkind and Bowen (1979) and Gray and Hudson (1984), girls

scored higher on the NIAS whereas boys scored higher on the NPFS (Lapsley et al.,

1989). Thus, these findings seem to support the creation of a more contemporary

understanding of the way the constructs of the Imaginary Audience and the Personal

Fable are tied to theory of adolescent development.

The Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable: Contemporary Research

However, a number of recent research studies (see Rycek, Stuhr, McDermott,

Benker, & Swartz, 1998; Schwartz, Maynard, & Uzelac, 2008) have yielded support for

the possible reemergence of egocentrism in later adolescence, a time by which

adolescents should have theoretically passed through this phase. Although these findings

may be in contrast to earlier research by Elkind and Bowen (1979) and Lapsley et al.,

(1989), it is still possible to understand these findings within the social-cognitive identity

formation paradigm. Schwartz et al. (2008) suggested that the reemergence of

egocentrism in late adolescence may serve as a coping mechanism for adolescents as they

prepare to leave home and go to college, a time where adolescents must forge new

friendships at the same time that they are in less contact with their high school friends.

This explanation fits with Lapsley and colleagues conceptualization of the Imaginary

Audience and the Personal Fable as methods for coping. Here, these young adults must

once again form a new, college identity, while renegotiating their relationship with their

parents.

The use of social networking sites, however, has boomed in recent years, allowing

adolescents to remain in closer contact with friends from high school and parents than

10
ever before, especially as they move from home. More so, however, Facebook allows the

user to create an online self, monitor the self, and change the self at any time, all while

the user compares the self to others. Thus, use of social networking sites, such as

Facebook, could perhaps provide an understanding as to why studies have found support

for the reemergence of egocentrism in later adolescence, as young adults seek to

reconfigure their identity not just in real life, but also online, on Facebook. This current

study seeks to extend this contemporary understanding of adolescent egocentrism by

providing an alternative explanation for the reemergence of adolescent egocentrism,

while examining the connection between Facebook usage and the development of the

Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable by adolescents and young adults.

It is possible to argue, of course, that social media usage and customization could

be related to a trait variable, such as self-consciousness, rather than a developmental

variable such as the Imaginary Audience or the Personal Fable. Although self-

consciousness should be related to Facebook customization practices, previous literature

seems to suggest that a developmental variable, such as the Imaginary Audience or the

Personal Fable, would better account for this relationship. Anecdotal and empirical

evidence (see Lenhart, 2009a; Lenhart, 2009b; Lenhart, et al. 2010; Subrahmanyam,

Reich, Waechter, & Espinoza, 2008) appears to suggest that adolescents use social media,

such as Facebook, in very different ways and with very different expectations than older

adults. Based on this, it also seems that adolescents use social media in different ways

from those only slightly older, those who have also been exposed to and used these

technologies from an early age. Therefore, it would appear that ones comfort and

experience with technology does not necessarily influence the ways in which they use

11
social media; rather, it is something to do with the processes of adolescence. Here, these

previous studies support the notion that adolescents engage not only in higher rates of

usage, but that they also engage in higher rates of customization (Lenhart, 2009b). It

makes sense, of course, that as Facebook users work to customize their profiles, showing

off their perceived positive traits, beliefs, and actions, they will come to use Facebook in

higher quantities. In other words, once Facebook customization becomes a main part of a

users Facebook experience, they move from normal use, which might include looking at

their friends profiles and editing theirs from time to time, to more experienced use. No

longer are they mere lurkers; rather, they invest both their time and efforts in order to

craft their online identity, thereby leading to more time spent on Facebook in general.

Thus, the cycle might begin with usage which could lead to increased customization,

which in turn would result in greater usage.

The fact that social media usage rates and customization levels do not remain

constant across the lifespan, however, would seem to argue that a developmental

mechanism is at play, rather than a trait variable that remains constant throughout ones

life. Therefore, in this paper we will argue that developmental phenomena, like the

Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable, will serve as better outcome variables for

still-developing children and adolescents, while self-consciousness will serve as a better

outcome variable for adults who are past the developmental phase. Previous research (see

Erikson, 1963; Marcia, 1980) has indicated that identity formation occurs during late

adolescence, providing an explanation as to why a developmental variable should help to

explain Facebook customization practices. Further research with a more adult sample

(Hamer & Bruch, 1994) has found some evidence for a relationship between self-

12
consciousness and ones progress toward identity development. Thus, it seems that both

self-consciousness and developmental variables (the Imaginary Audience and the

Personal Fable) should be related to higher levels of Facebook customization, as users

employ Facebook as a means to achieving and displaying their identity. Based on

developmental theory, however, it seems that Imaginary Audience scores should be

related to Facebook customization only among still-developing children and adolescents,

whereas self-consciousness should be related to Facebook usage among adult participants

who are no longer developing and who may rely on trait variables, such as self-

consciousness, to guide actions. Therefore,

H1a: Controlling for age, overall Facebook use, and self-consciousness among

participants aged 9 to 22, Imaginary Audience will be positively related to ones level of

Facebook customization.

H1b: Controlling for age and overall Facebook use among participants aged 23

and above, self-consciousness will be positively related to ones level of Facebook

customization.

Imaginary Audience and Social Networking Sites

As evidenced previously, Facebook provides a nearly perfect forum for both a

users acting and reacting to a perceived Imaginary Audience. As argued by Lapsley et al.

(1989) in their reformulation of adolescent egocentrism, the Imaginary Audience serves

as both an expression of object relational identification and the wish to keep object ties,

arising from the growing divide between parent and child during adolescence. Not only

do social networking sites such as Facebook allow users to maintain relatively close ties

to friends, parents, and acquaintances, thereby alleviating the fear of losing relationships,

13
but Facebook also affords users the tools with which to change ones profile at a

moments notice. As users are able to see the profiles of each person among their network

of friends, they may come to see the social norms which operate within this community;

the attributes of profiles that are held in highest esteem. They will interpret the profiles of

highly regarded others, seeking to understand or craft their own self in ways that fit with

the normative beliefs of their Facebook community. In short, adolescents select and

interact with media based on who they are, who they would like to be, and who they

think they should be (Moreno, 2010). The myriad of customization options available

through the Facebook interface give users the chance to create a profile that accentuates

or even creates perceived positive attributes while minimizing or completely hiding any

perceived negatives. Thus, through the maintenance of ones Facebook profile page, one

may continually act toward a perceived, online Imaginary Audience. In this continued

maintenance of ones profile, however, users may quickly and easily change their online

self as normative values of their community change, thereby reacting to a perceived

Imaginary Audience.

The Imaginary Audience and Facebook: Comparison

These behaviors can perhaps be best understood by using the Adolescents Media

Practice Model (Steele & Brown, 1995). This model provides an understanding of how

media is added into an adolescents lived experience; from selection, to interaction with,

to application of, and finally, to identity from. In doing so, this model allows for an

understanding of how the Imaginary Audience can be constructed and reacted to, in a

mediated sense. Let us first examine how one might select and interact with a medium

such as Facebook. As adolescents and young adults attempt to find their identities, they

14
interact with media in ways that allow them to best understand how to craft their identity.

Based on the tenets of Social Learning Theory (Bandura, 1986), users will examine

media for an understanding of social norms. They might select media based on how their

close friends select media (Steele & Brown, 1995); thus, adolescents whose friends are

on Facebook will too use Facebook. Here, the model would suggest that who they should

or would like to be is based off of the normative beliefs and values of their Facebook

friends; the beliefs and values they find to be positive and cool. In this forum, users

compare their Facebook pages to the Facebook pages of others. Social Learning and

Social Comparison Theories (Bandura, 1986), however, are not limited to younger

adolescents, thus providing an explanation as to why recent studies (Rycek et al., 1998;

Schwartz et al., 2008) have found higher Imaginary Audience scores in later ages.

As suggested previously, younger adults are still concerned with fitting in and

maintaining close ties with others while they grapple with their individual concept of

identity. This need highlights the importance of Facebook, as it serves as a place where

users may search for normative values with which to shape their individual beliefs and

actions. To follow the Media Practice Model (Steele & Brown, 1995) then, an adolescent

will select Facebook in order to stay in touch with friends and family. They will interact

with others through Facebook, thereby taking in the norms of their online community. As

will be discussed later, they will apply these norms to their own life, thinking of ways to

exhibit them, and then change behavior offline to reflect these norms. In doing so, they

form a mediated identity, all the while reacting to an unseen other in Facebook, the

Imaginary Audience.

15
Imaginary Audience and the Media Super-Peer: Cognitive Change

Although generally referred to as the Media Super-Peer in the extant literature,

the general concept of the Imaginary Audience has been empirically studied in recent

years. In a recent article on adolescent use of social networking sites, Moreno (2010)

notes key attributes of Facebook, such as the perceived accuracy of posted information

among Facebook users, which causes Facebook to act as what she calls a media super-

peer. This media super-peer is seen as a construction of all of the normative beliefs of

users within a social networking community and has been show to influence the

behaviors of others (Moreno, 2010). For example, using focus groups of 11 to 18 year-

olds, Moreno, Briner, Williams, Walker, and Christakis (2009) found that adolescents

interpret displays of alcohol use or attitudes toward alcohol use posted on social

networking sites as real thoughts and behaviors. It has been argued that Facebook, as a

form of media, may be more persuasive due to its combination of interpersonal

communication and mass media (Fogg, 2008). Therefore, it would seem that social norms

may play an important role here, such that adolescents may customize their Facebook

profile to reflect the values of those in their circle of friends. In fact, qualitative research

complied by Moreno et al. (2010) suggests that adolescents perceive alcohol-related

pictures as an effort to appear cool.

It stands to reason then, and was argued by Moreno et al. (2009), that these

representations may cause users to alter their beliefs, such that their beliefs come to

match the normative beliefs of the online community. As the authors note, social

networking sites provide a venue for the exploration of identity, with opportunities for

maintenance, adaptation, and others feedback (Moreno, 2010). These findings illustrate

16
how social networking sites are used to shape identity; after comparing their social

networking page to others, adolescents have the opportunity to tailor their profiles in such

a way to accentuate or perhaps even manufacture the cool behaviors in which they

engage, thereby changing a small facet of their identity. As evidenced previously,

adolescents sense of who they are and who they want to be plays an important role in the

ways in which they select and engage with social networking sites (Steele & Brown,

1995). The research of Moreno (2010) and Moreno, et al. (2009), indicates that media can

be used by adolescents as a means to construct an identity, both individual and group-

based. Additionally, the affordances of Facebook allow for profiles to be customized

quickly and easily, in an attempt to show off this constructed identity. The ability for

Facebook users to quickly and easily assess the normative values of this online forum

coupled with the customization option available to them makes it easy to compare ones

self to others and change ones online identity when necessary. Therefore,

H2: Among a sample of 9-22 year-olds, and controlling for age and self-

consciousness, the relationship between Facebook use and Imaginary Audience score

will be moderated by ones level of Facebook profile customization, such that those with

higher customization levels will score higher on a scale of Imaginary Audience.

Here, however, I argue that this media super-peer, which has been previously

demonstrated in the extant literature, is conceptually the same as the Imaginary Audience.

Thus, we see that users of social networking sites, such as Facebook, compare their pages

to the perceived norms and beliefs of the constructed Imaginary Audience, all in the

context of the socio-cognitive development of self-understanding. As briefly mentioned

above, Facebook provides users the perfect opportunity to remain in close contact with

17
their friends, an important goal in the adolescent and young adult experience. Perhaps

more importantly, however, Facebook provides users a near perfect venue for a mediated

exploration of the self. In addition, Facebook provides the customization tools necessary

to carefully tailor ones profile to fit in with the social norms of their community, thereby

allowing for the reaction to a perceived Imaginary Audience. As seen in the Moreno et al.

(2009) study, social networking profile customization can occur in an effort to react to

the normative beliefs of like others. The level of customizability afforded the user should

allow Facebook users to react to a perceived Imaginary Audience. This would especially

be true of children and adolescents who are still developing. On the other hand, a trait

variable, such as self-consciousness, would be used by adults who are finished

developing to guide behaviors, rather than a developmental variable. Therefore,

H3a: Controlling for self-consciousness and age, there will be a positive

relationship between Facebook usage and Imaginary Audience score among participants

aged 9-22.

H3b: Controlling for age, there will be positive relationship between self-

consciousness and overall Facebook usage among adults aged 23 and above.

Imaginary Audience and Behavioral Rehearsal: Behavioral Change

To this point, empirical evidence and theory suggest that Facebook users compare

their pages to those of others, thereby constructing an Imaginary Audience. Next, users

think about ways they can show themselves as having these perceived values and beliefs,

thereby reacting to the constructed Imaginary Audience. There is, however, one final

step; that of changing actual behaviors to reflect these perceived norms, thus fully

reacting to the constructed Imaginary Audience. Although not previously used in this

18
context, Behavioral Rehearsal can serve as a mechanism by which users of Facebook

actually change their behaviors, after first comparing themselves to the Imaginary

Audience and thinking of ways they can change their pages to reflect the norms of

Facebook. Here, Behavioral Rehearsal refers to a three step process that people go

through when considering some change in their behaviors. First, people compare their

behaviors to those of others, searching for opportunities to change their actions. Next,

they think about how they can achieve the desired behavior change. Taken together, these

two steps are the cognitive process of this model. Finally, having already thought about

what they would like to do and how they might do it, they act in such a way to produce

the desired change. This final step is the behavioral process of the model. Through the

process of Behavioral Rehearsal, research has shown that participants are able to

effectively change behavior in premeditated ways (Remondet, Hansson, Rule, &

Winfrey, 1987).

Previous research using Behavioral Rehearsal largely involves learning new

behaviors for positive outcomes, such as coping with widowhood (Remondet et al.,

1987), raising assertiveness levels (McFall & Lillesand, 1971), and bettering social skills

(MacDonald, Lindquist, Kramer, McGrath, & Rhyne, 1975). The principal tenets of

Behavioral Rehearsal, however, can certainly be applied here. In each of these studies,

after learning a particular technique, participants rehearsed the new behavior or idea, and

often rehearsed it multiple times. Applying this to the current study, it seems likely that

users of social networking sites compare themselves to an unseen other, the Imaginary

Audience, an entity that sees their personal profile page and is constantly thinking about

it and judging it. If after comparing ones profile to those of close friends or

19
acquaintances, a user perceives that something is wrong with their Facebook page, that it

does not adequately reflect the ideals, values, or beliefs that it should, they will continue

the process of Behavioral Rehearsal, moving to the cognition stage. They will think of

ways to make those premeditated changes to their page. Using the example of Moreno et

al., 2009, Facebook users see pictures of alcohol consumption online and perceive them

as others real beliefs toward alcohol. If they find their profile lacking in any respect, by

reacting to their constructed Imaginary Audience, they think of ways they can reflect

their alcohol beliefs online, in order to match these perceived values. At this stage, they

have completed the cognitive processes of the Behavioral Rehearsal model by comparing

themselves to their perceived Imaginary Audience, while thinking about how to react to

this unseen other.

Continuing with the example, a Facebook user with no pictures of alcohol

consumption to post will think about how they can change their behaviors in order show

off these beliefs or values. Having already considered behavior changes, they then take

these new beliefs offline and change their behaviors. At this point, they will perhaps take

a picture of themselves drinking alcohol, or at a party where alcohol is present, thereby

implicitly merging their behaviors regarding alcohol with those that they perceive on

Facebook. Now, with this picture taken, they then go back online and post it, completing

the Behavioral Rehearsal process. In doing so, they have rehearsed this perceived norm

until it manifested itself in changed behavior. At this point, they have compared

themselves to others, thought about how to change facets of their identity that are

perceived to be negatives, and then actually changed their behaviors in order to fully

exhibit this change. Through the first two stages of Behavioral Rehearsal, they have

20
perceived and reacted to an Imaginary Audience. With the completion of the behavioral

stage of the Behavioral Rehearsal model, they have fully reacted to their perceived

Imaginary Audience and have customized both their offline and online behavior in order

to show off this change. Overall, through rehearsal, they have completed the cycle from

constructing an Imaginary Audience online to reacting to this Imaginary Audience in the

form of offline behavior change. Additionally, they have reached higher levels of

Facebook customization, as they spent more time crafting and perfecting their online

profile. In doing so, they have also spent more and more time on Facebook in general.

Thus,

H4a: Among participants aged 9-22, scores on the Behavioral Rehearsal scale

will be positively related to Imaginary Audience scores.

H4b: Among participants aged 9-22, scores on a measure of Facebook

Behavioral Rehearsal will mediate the relationship between overall Facebook use and

Imaginary Audience scores.

H5: Overall Facebook usage will moderate the relationship between age and

Imaginary Audience score, such that those who use Facebook more will score higher on

Imaginary Audience, regardless of age.

Personal Fable and Social Networking Sites

Similar to their relationship with the Imaginary Audience, social networking sites,

such as Facebook, also provide an excellent forum for the experience of the Personal

Fable. It seems, however, that this relationship would work in tandem with the

relationship between Facebook and the Imaginary Audience. The relationship between

the Personal Fable and Facebook does not concern users identity formation through

21
reaction to perceived normative beliefs of their community; rather, this relationship is

concerned identity formation stemming from the perception that one is a leader within

their online community. Here, we would argue that the Facebook user is deeply

concerned with the number of friends he or she has, as friends are seen as a commodity in

this community. It seems natural then, that as the number of friends grows, so too does

the belief that one is popular, special, or unique. Instead of reacting to a perceived

Imaginary Audience, the user perceives others reacting to the information that is posted

on their profile page. The basis of the Facebook experience resides in the acquisition of

friends; the concept of social networking is concerned with staying in touch with

acquaintances more easily than one might do in real life. Due to its relative ease of use,

however, Facebook allows its users to stay in close contact to others with whom the user

has had little to no actual face-to-face contact. Thus, we are able to see the connection

between vast numbers of so-called friends and the creation of the Personal Fable. As

stated by Lapsley et al. (1989) and Lapsley (1993), adolescents in this phase of

separation-individuation have what is known as the self-observing ego (Blos, 1962). This

allows the adolescent to see him or herself as special, unique, or one-of-a-kind. Facebook

allows for this as well by letting the user see their following of friends, once again

providing a possible explanation as to why Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable

scores have been found to be higher among older adolescents.

Additionally, the relationship between the Personal Fable and social networking

sites can be explained through the process of identity formation. In their Media Practice

Model, Steele and Brown (1995) noted that adolescents use and incorporate media into

their daily lives as a means of self-expression. Further, the finding of Moreno et al.

22
(2009) can be extrapolated to indicate that Facebook content can change the beliefs and

the behaviors of others. In other words, it seems that content posted on others, as well as

ones own profile page can aid in the identity formation process of adolescence. Taken

together, these findings illustrate the way in which the Personal Fable may be related to

social networking sites. Users with a large number of friends may come to see themselves

as special because they act as a leader within their online community. They are able to

see when others post comments on their Facebook page wall, or to a posted picture. Due

to the open nature of Facebook, users can clearly see when others react to their profile,

the expression of their identity. This attention, in turn, may give rise to feelings of

uniqueness, or specialness. Therefore,

H6: Controlling for age and self-consciousness, there will be a positive

relationship between Facebook use and Personal Fable scores.

H7: Controlling for age and self-consciousness, there will be a positive

relationship between number of Facebook friends and Personal Fable scores.

Based on the consistent findings of Elkind and Bowen (1979), Gray and Hudson

(1984), and Lapsley et al. (1989) regarding gender differences, we ask:

RQ1a: Among 9-22 year-olds, does gender moderate the relationship between

Facebook use and Imaginary Audience?

RQ1b: Among 9-22 year-olds, does gender moderate the relationship between

Facebook use and Personal Fable?

Finally, as this study extends the adolescent egocentrism research into a new

medium, we do not have a firm understanding as to the speed of these developmental

processes. Therefore, we pose the following research question:

23
 RQ2: What is the relationship between the number of years an individual has had

a Facebook profile and their Imaginary Audience/Personal Fable scores?

24
 CHAPTER 3

METHOD

A self-report survey of Facebook usage behaviors and customization, Behavioral

Rehearsal, Imaginary Audience attributes, Personal Fable attributes, and perceived self-

consciousness was administered to a sample of middle school, high school, college-aged,

and adult participants in order to address the hypotheses and research questions of this

study. For descriptive and inferential data analysis, participants were split into

theoretically-meaningful groups as follows: early adolescence (ages 10-12), middle

adolescence (ages 13-15), late adolescence (ages 16-18), young adulthood (ages 19-22),

and adulthood (ages 23 and older) (Erikson, 1974).

Participants

Participants ranged in age from 9 to 78, accounting for middle and high school

aged adolescents, college-aged adults, and older adults. For the elementary and middle

school students, a school was contacted prior to data collection and asked to help recruit

students to participate in this research study. The research team acquired principal and

school board approval prior to research beginning at the school site. 172 participants aged

10 to 14 were recruited from a private elementary and middle school in the northeastern

United States. 41 returned completed parental consent forms and completed surveys in

paper and pencil format (response rate = 23.8%) from this site. Females represented

56.5% (N = 26) of this sample. The median age was 11 years.

In order to diversify the sample of middle and high school students, public school

participants in this age range were recruited via a snowball sample and received a gift

card to an online retailer for their completion of a paper and pencil or online version of

25
the survey. Parental consent was acquired prior to children or adolescents taking either

version of the survey. This sample was equally divided between males and females.

87.5% (N = 49) of the sample indicated their race as white, 7.1% (N = 4) indicated their

race as Hispanic/Latino, and 5.4% (N = 3) indicated their ethnicity as Asian. Here, the

median age was 15.

Students at a small, private university in the southeast and a large, public

university in the northeastern United States were also recruited from classrooms and

asked to participate for a nominal amount of extra credit. Once again, in order to

diversify the sample, participants were also recruited from a large public university in the

northeast. Participants in this sample completed the survey online by following a link that

was sent to their university email accounts. In order to recruit older adults and adults no

longer in college, members of the research team used a convenient snowball sample,

where participants were asked to forward the link to the online survey to their friends and

relatives. Females represented 62.7% (N = 136) of this sample. 83.4% (N = 181) of the

sample indicated their race as white, 9.7% (N = 21) indicated their race as African-

American, 1.4% (N = 3) indicated their race as Hispanic/Latino, and 5.5% (N = 12)

indicated their race as Asian. Here, the median age was 22.

Taken together, 309 participants completed the survey. Females represented

59.9% (N = 185) of the final sample. 87.1% (N = 269) of the sample indicated their race

as white, 6.5% (N = 20) indicated their race as African-American, 2.3% (N = 7) indicated

their race as Hispanic/Latino, and 4.2% (N = 13) indicated their race as Asian. The

median age of all participants was 21.

26
Control Variable and Measure

Private and Public Self-Consciousness

An adaptation of the 23-item Fenigstein Self-Consciousness scale was used to

measure private and public self-consciousness, a different construct from that of

Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable (Fenigstein, Scheier, & Buss, 1975). Previous

research has indicated that this scale is appropriate for use with adolescents (Rankin,

Lane, Gibbons, & Gerrard, 2004) as well as adults. In an effort to keep the overall

instrument concise and thereby usable with younger audiences, this measure was

shortened to 8 items. Using data compiled during a pilot test of this instrument,

researchers took the four highest loaded items from each dimension, public self-

consciousness and private self-consciousness to create a new, 8-item measure. T-tests

revealed that the means of each of these 4-item subscales did not differ significantly from

the means of the original scales. Further, both the four-item private self-consciousness (r

(72) = .72, p < .01) and the four-item public self-consciousness scales (r (72) = .60, p <

.01) were strongly correlated to the original measure. Sample items from the private self-

consciousness scale include I think about myself a lot and I generally pay attention to

my inner feelings. Sample items from the public self-consciousness scale include I

usually worry about making a good impression and Im usually aware of my

appearance. Both scales were measured using a 1-4 Likert-type scale anchored by not

at all like me and a lot like me. 9-12 year-olds scored a mean of 2.32 (SD = .62), 13-

15 year-olds 2.76 (SD = .56), 16-18 year-olds 2.63 (SD = .84), 19-22 year-olds 2.84 (SD

= .67), and participants 23 years of age and older 2.78 (SD = .61). This scale was found to

be reliable, with a Cronbachs alpha of .83.

27
Independent Variables and Measures

Facebook Usage

Participants were asked to self-report on a number of questions aimed at

understanding the extent to which each uses Facebook. Participants were asked to report

the amount of time they spent on Facebook each day as well as the number of friends that

they have on their Facebook profile. They were also asked to report how many times per

day they log into Facebook as well as the length of time that they have had a Facebook

profile. Overall, among those currently using Facebook, 9-12 year-olds spent a mean time

of 38.08 minutes on Facebook (SD = 32.37), 13-15 year-olds 50.37 minutes (SD =

29.83), 16-18 year-olds 66.00 minutes (SD = 56.22), 19-22 year-olds 78.95 minutes (SD

= 69.54), and participants 23 years of age and older 48.92 minutes (SD = 39.84).

Facebook Customization

A Facebook customization scale was used in order to understand the extent to

which and how often each age group modifies their Facebook profile page. The scale

individuated a number of Facebook customization techniques, such as the number of

times users change their profile picture, change their status, add photos, and comment on

others walls. For example, participants were asked how often they engage in these

aforementioned behaviors on a 1 to 4 Likert-type scale anchored by never and often. This

scale was reliable, with a Cronbachs alpha of .93. 9-12 year-olds scored a mean of 2.20

on this measure (SD = .80), 13-15 year-olds 2.76 (SD = .55), 16-18 year-olds 2.23 (SD =

.67), 19-22 year-olds 2.33 (SD = .69), and participants 23 years of age and older 2.17 (SD

= .94).

28
Theoretical Mechanism: Behavioral Rehearsal

The theoretical mechanism of behavioral rehearsal was measured using a 10-item

scale developed by the research team. Taking the three steps of behavioral rehearsal

outlined in the literature (see Remondet et al., 1987), researchers created at least three

items to measure each stage: comparison, cognitive change, and behavior change. This

Likert-like measure is anchored by 1, indicating an answer of never, and 4, which

indicates an answer of always. Sample items include I compare my Facebook page to

the Facebook pages of my friends, I think of Facebook friending new acquaintances

when I meet them for the first time, and I sometimes do things just so I can post about

it on Facebook. 9-12 year-olds scored a mean of 1.98 on this measure (SD = 1.07), 13-

15 year-olds 2.08 (SD = .80), 16-18 year-olds 1.73 (SD = .69), 19-22 year-olds 1.77 (SD

= .74), and participants 23 years of age and older 1.45 (SD = .75). This measure was

reliable (Cronbachs = .94)

Dependent Measures

New Imaginary Audience Scale

The New Imaginary Audience Scale (NIAS) was be used to determine the extent

to which participants have a tendency to engage in imaginary audience ideation.

Developed by Lapsley et al. (1989) in response to the changing conceptualization of the

Imaginary Audience detailed above, this scale consists of 42 items measured on a Likert-

type scale where an answer of 1 indicates that the participant never engages in the

behavior and an answer of 4 indicates the participant engages in the behavior often.

Participants are asked to respond to how often they think about certain notions or ideas.

Sample questions include being rejected by a girlfriend or boyfriend, imagining what

29
everyone will thing if you became famous, and imagining how others would feel if you

were gone (Lapsley, et al., 1989). 9-12 year-olds scored a mean of 2.10 on this measure

(SD = .60), 13-15 year-olds 2.46 (SD = .62), 16-18 year-olds 2.37 (SD = .40), 19-22 year-

olds 2.42 (SD = .50), and participants 23 years of age and older 1.89 (SD = .52). This

measure was found to be reliable, with a Cronbachs alpha of .95.

New Personal Fable Scale

The new Personal Fable scale (Alberts, Elkind, & Ginsberg, 2007) will be used to

measure participants levels of perceived personal speciality and invulnerability, two

constructs that are considered central to the re-conceptualization of the Personal Fable

(Lapsley et al., 1989). Rather than using the 46 item New Personal Fable scale (NPFS;

Lapsley, et al., 1989) which may have created an instrument too onerous for the younger

participants in this study, researchers opted to use this 12 item scale. A previous

validation study found that this scale was correlated with risk-taking, a replication of the

findings of Lapsley, et al. (1989). Sample items include I know I get away with a lot of

stuff other kids get in trouble for, Some kids dont worry about getting injured when

they play sports, and I dont worry about what I eat because I know I wont get fat.

Language was changed from other kids to other people in the older participant

version of the survey. This measure was reliable, with a Cronbachs alpha of .81. 9-12

year-olds scored a mean of 2.36 on this measure (SD = .72), 13-15 year-olds 2.79 (SD =

.71), 16-18 year-olds 2.67 (SD = .46), 19-22 year-olds 2.67 (SD = .64), and participants

23 years of age and older 2.08 (SD = .58).

30
Procedure

At the private elementary and middle school, the principal was approached prior

to data collection and asked to provide consent for members of the research team to

recruit students from the fourth through eighth grade classrooms. One week prior to the

researcher being in the school, a parental recruitment letter and consent form was sent

home with each student in these grades. Teachers collected completed consent forms as

they were returned, keeping track of which students had brought one back. On the day of

data collection, these students were asked to come to an empty class room to complete

the survey. The researcher read the child assent form to them before they indicated their

assent with a signature. Participants were given the opportunity to ask any questions they

might have prior to completing the survey. Once complete, each participant handed in

their survey and was thanked for their time. The school received a small honorarium in

thanks for its participation.

Additionally, parents whose children were in the appropriate age range (10-17)

were identified via a convenient snowball sample and given either a packet containing a

recruitment letter, a parental consent form, a child assent form, and the survey

instrument, or an online version of these documents was sent to their email address. They

were told that the survey should take no longer than 20-30 minutes for their child to

complete. Those whose children complete a paper and pencil version of the survey were

given instructions for returning the survey and necessary consent materials to a member

of the research team. Children and adolescents recruited via this method received a $5

gift card to an online retailer in exchange for their participation.

31
 College-aged participants were recruited from classrooms, which offered a

nominal amount of extra credit for completion. A member of the research team sent

members of participating classes a recruitment email with a link to the online survey.

Participants were directed to the online consent form. Following completion, they were

linked to the online survey. They were told that the survey should take no longer than 20-

30 minutes to complete. Similar to the students completing the survey for a service credit,

once college students completed the survey, they were linked to a document where they

could enter their student identification so they could receive course credit for completing

the survey. Non-college and older adult participants were recruited via a snowball

sample, where contacted participants were asked to forward the recruitment email

containing the online survey link to friends and relatives. Upon completion of the survey,

participants were thanked for their time.

32
 CHAPTER 4

RESULTS

To test H1a, which asked about the relationship between Imaginary Audience and

Facebook customization while controlling for age, overall Facebook use, and self-

consciousness among a 9-22 year old sample, a hierarchical multiple regression was run.

Using the data from the 9-22 year-old sample, the three control variables were entered on

step one and were significant (R = .64, F (3, 209) = 49.11, p < .001). Specifically, age (

= .35, p < .001), overall Facebook use ( = .36, p < .001), and self-consciousness ( =

.15, p < .05) were all significantly related to increases in Facebook customization

practices, with older adolescents, those who used Facebook more overall and those who

are self-conscious engaging in more Facebook customization. Next, Imaginary Audience

score was entered into the model on step two. This block was significant as well (R = .65,

F (4, 208) = 38.29, p < .001), with a significant change in R2 (R2 = .011, p < .05).

Specifically, Imaginary Audience was significant ( = .13, p < .05), whereas self-

consciousness was no longer significant ( = .09, p = n.s.). Overall, H1a was supported,

as Imaginary Audience proved to be a better predictor of Facebook customization

practices among 9-22 year olds than ones level of self-consciousness.

To test H1b, which predicted that, after controlling for age, overall Facebook use,

and Imaginary Audience, self-consciousness would be related to Facebook customization

among an adult sample older than 23, a hierarchical multiple regression was used. The

control variables were all entered on step one, using the data set from the 23 year-old and

above sample. This block proved to be significant (R = .60, F (3, 70) = 13.50, p < .001).

Only overall Facebook use, however, was significantly related to Facebook customization

33
behaviors ( = .55, p < .001). Unlike the findings with a child and adolescent sample,

neither age ( = -.14, p = n.s.) nor Imaginary Audience ( = .03, p = n.s.) were related to

Facebook customization, as might be developmentally predicted. The main variable of

interest, self-consciousness, was then entered on step two. This was significant as well (R

= .60, F (4, 70) = 10.12, p < .001), although the change in R2 was not significant (R2 =

.003, p = n.s.). Individually, self-consciousness was not significantly related to Facebook

customization among adults ( = -.07, p = n.s.). Taken together, these results do not

support H1b.

Prior to testing the next proposed relationship, both overall Facebook use and

Facebook customization were dichotomized using a median split, resulting in high and

low groups for each variable. An ANCOVA was then used to test the relationship

proposed in H2, using the data from the 9-22 year-old sample. This hypothesis predicted

that Facebook customization would moderate the relationship between overall Facebook

use and Imaginary Audience among a 9-22 year old sample, after controlling for age and

self-consciousness. The overall model was significant (F (5, 213) = 20.10, p < .001.

Individually, the main effect of overall Facebook time was significantly related to

Imaginary Audience (F (1, 213) = 4.99, p < .05). Specifically, those low in Facebook use

scored a mean of 2.20 (SD = .52) on Imaginary Audience whereas those high in overall

Facebook use scored a mean of 2.53 (SD = .51). The other main effect of Facebook

customization, however, was not significantly related to ones level of Imaginary

Audience (F (1, 213) = 2.06, p = n.s.). The hypothesized interaction between overall

Facebook use and level of customization was non-significant as well (F (1, 213) = .41, p

= n.s.). Therefore, ones level of Facebook customization did not moderate the

34
relationship between overall Facebook use and Imaginary Audience. Those high in

Facebook use, however, did score significantly higher in Imaginary Audience than those

low in Facebook use.

A hierarchical multiple regression was used to test H3a, which predicted that,

when controlling for age and self-consciousness, overall Facebook usage would be

positively related to Imaginary Audience scores among a 9-22 year-old sample. Results

supported this hypothesis. First, using the data set from the 9-22 year-old sample, age and

self-consciousness were entered on step one (R = .54, R2 = .29, F (2, 210) = 42.76, p <

.001). Next, ones overall time spent on Facebook was entered on step two. This was

significant as well (R = .57, F (3, 209) = 33.23, p < .001). The change in R2 from step one

to step two was significant as well (R2 = .03, p = < .001). Individually, overall

Facebook time was significantly related to Imaginary Audience score ( = .20, p < .001),

thereby supporting the relationship proposed in H3a.

A separate hierarchical multiple regression was used to test the relationship

proposed in H3b. This hypothesis predicted that, when controlling for age, there would be

a positive relationship between ones level of self-consciousness and overall Facebook

use among an adult sample. Age was again entered on step one and was not significant (R

= .21, R2 = .06, F (1, 79) = 3.76, p = n.s.). Self-consciousness was then entered on step

two. Neither the model (R = .26, F (1, 79) = 2.77, p = n.s.) nor the change in R2 was

significant (R2 = .02, p = n.s.). Overall, self-consciousness was not individually

predicative of Facebook use ( = .15, p = n.s.). Taken together, the results of this test do

not support H3b.

35
 H4a predicted that, among a 9-22 year-old sample and while controlling for age

and self-consciousness, Behavioral Rehearsal scores would be positively related to

Imaginary Audience scores. This hypothesis was tested with a hierarchical multiple

regression. On the first step, age and self-consciousness were significant predictors of

Imaginary Audience (R = .54, R2 = .41, F (2, 212) = 42.76, p < .001). Next, Behavioral

Rehearsal was entered alone on step two. This model was also significant (R = .64, F (3,

212) = 47.88, p < .001). Specifically, the change in R2 resulting from Behavioral

Rehearsal accounted for more than 10 percent (R2 = .12, p < .001). Individually, both

self-consciousness ( = .38, p < .001) and Behavioral Rehearsal ( = .39, p < .001) were

significant predictors of Imaginary Audience, while age ( = -.06, p = n.s.) was not.

To test H4b, which predicted that Behavioral Rehearsal would mediate the

relationship between overall Facebook usage and Imaginary Audience scores among 9-22

year-olds, a mediation analysis was conducted using multiple hierarchical regressions.

First, we tested the relationship between Facebook usage, the independent variable, and

Imaginary Audience, the dependent variable, while controlling for age and self-

consciousness. This was significant on both the first (R = .54, R2 = .29, F (2, 212) =

47.88, p < .001) and second step (R = .57, F (3, 212) = 33.23, p < .001; R2 = .03, p <

.001). Specifically, overall Facebook use was significantly and positively related to

Imaginary Audience scores ( = .20, p < .001). Second, another hierarchical multiple

regression was used to examine the relationship between the independent variable,

overall Facebook use and the mediator, Behavioral Rehearsal. Again, age and self-

consciousness were entered on step one, with overall Facebook use entered on step two.

Both step one (R = .50, R2 = .26, F (2, 214) = 36.51, p < .001) and step two (R = .61, F

36
(3, 214) = 42.06, p < .001; R2 = .12, p < .001) were significant. Individually, overall

Facebook time was significantly related to Behavioral Rehearsal ( = .38, p < .001).

Third, a hierarchical regression was used to test the relationship between the mediating

variable, Behavioral Rehearsal, and the outcome variable, Imaginary Audience. Both

steps one (R = .54, R2 = .29, F (2, 212) = 42.75, p < .001) and two (R = .64, F (3, 212) =

47.88, p < .001; R2 = .12, p < .001) were significant. Individually, Behavioral Rehearsal

was significantly and positively related to Imaginary Audience scores ( = .39, p < .001).

Finally, having tested the previous three relationships between the independent

variable and the dependent variable, the independent variable and the proposed mediating

variable, and the proposed mediating variable and the dependent variable, and in order to

test for a full mediation effect, Behavioral Rehearsal was added to the model with overall

Facebook use as the independent variable and Imaginary Audience as the dependent

variable. Again, both step one (R = .54, R2 = .29, F (2, 212) = 42.76, p < .001) and step

two (R = .64, F (4, 212) = 36.13, p < .001; R2 = .12, p < .001) were significant.

Specifically, Behavioral Rehearsal was significantly related to Imaginary Audience

scores ( = .37, p < .001). Overall Facebook use, however, was no longer significantly

related to Imaginary Audience once Behavioral Rehearsal was entered into the model (

= .06, p = .34), thereby revealing a full mediation effect (Baron & Kenney, 1986) (please

see Figure 1). These results provide support for the mediation effect predicted by H4b.

37
 FIGURE 1: MEDIATING EFFECT OF BEHAVIORAL REHEARSAL

Overall .20**
Imaginary
Facebook
Usage Audience

Behavioral
Rehearsal

Overall .38** .39**

Facebook Imaginary
Usage Audience

.06

** indicates p < .001

Reported coefficients are standardized beta weights

Considering this mediation analysis, and the previous finding for H1a of a

significant relationship between Imaginary Audience and Facebook customization when

specifically controlling for overall Facebook use, the relationship between customization

and overall Facebook use was tested next. This was done in an effort to better understand

and create a theoretical cycle, providing an explanation of how an adolescent Facebook

user might go from Facebook use to heightened levels of Imaginary Audience and back

to Facebook use. Therefore, a hierarchical multiple regression was used to understand the

relationship between Facebook customization and overall usage. Like all other analyses

in this overall model, age and self-consciousness were entered in the first step and were

significant (R = .44, R2 = .19, F (2, 214) = 25.05, p < .001). Facebook customization was

entered on the second step. This model was significant (R = .56, F (3, 213) = 32.39, p <

.001) and accounted for 31 percent of all variance in Facebook usage (R2 = .12, p <

.001). Facebook customization was itself significantly related to overall Facebook usage

38
( = .43, p < .001), thereby completing the model for the cycle of Facebook use,

Behavioral Rehearsal, Imaginary Audience, and Facebook customization (please see

figure 2 below).

FIGURE 2: THEORETICAL CYCLE OF FACEBOOK USE, BEHAVIORAL

REHEARSAL, IMAGINARY AUDIENCE, AND FACEBOOK CUSTOMIZATION

Behavioral
Rehearsal

Overall
Facebook
Imaginary
Usage Audience

Facebook
Customization

In sum, then, 9-22 year-olds high in Facebook use report significantly higher

Behavioral Rehearsal. Higher Behavioral Rehearsal is then related to heightened

Imaginary Audience levels. When controlling for overall Facebook time, higher

Imaginary Audience is associated with higher Facebook customization practices, which

are then related to higher levels of overall Facebook use. Together, these relationships

complete a cycle from Facebook use to Imaginary Audience and back again.

Next, H5, which predicted that overall Facebook use would moderate the

relationship between age and Imaginary Audience scores for adolescents (9-22), was

tested by using two separate ANOVAs. First, an ANOVA was used to examine the

relationship between age and Imaginary Audience. As mentioned previously, age was

split into four developmentally-meaningful groups: 9-12, 13-15, 16-18, and 19-22. This

39
ANOVA indicated that there was a significant difference between the age groups on their

Imaginary Audience scores (F (3, 214) = 4.03, p < .01). Post-hoc Sheffe tests indicated

that 9-12 year olds scored significantly lower on Imaginary Audience than 13-15 year

olds and 19-22 year olds. There was no significant difference on Imaginary Audience

scores between 9-12 year-olds and the 16-18 year old age group. Among the three older

age groups (13-15, 16-18, 19-22), there were no significant differences on Imaginary

Audience (please see table 1). Thus, IA increases significantly from age 13 and then

remains relatively stable.

TABLE 1: DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AGE GROUPS ON IMAGINARY AUDIECNCE

Mean Std. Deviation

9-12 year olds 2.10a 0.60

13-15 year olds 2.46b 0.62

16-18 year olds 2.37a,b 0.40

19-22 year olds 2.42b 0.50

Note: Means that do not share a common subscript are significant at p < .05.

Knowing that there is a significant difference between age groups, overall

Facebook use was added to the ANOVA as an independent variable in order to test for an

interaction effect between age and Imaginary Audience. As with previous analyses,

overall Facebook use was broken into two groups using a median split at 45 minutes.

This interaction between age and overall Facebook use on Imaginary Audience neared

significance (F (3, 213) = 2.42, p = .07). Specifically, among the 9-12 year-old age

group, Imaginary Audience scores were higher for high (M = 2.70, SD = .85) rather than

low (M = 2.00, SD = .52) Facebook users. Additionally, among the 13-15 year-old age

40
group, Imaginary audience scores were higher for high (M = 2.76, SD = .52) rather than

low (M = 2.20, SD = .61) Facebook users. For both the 16-18 and 19-22 year-old age

groups, those high in Facebook use did score higher on Imaginary Audience than those

low in Facebook use, although these were not significantly different (please see figure 3).

As indicated by the means presented in table 1, Imaginary Audience scores

remain relatively flat from age 13 to age 22. In an effort to find to find the age at which

Imaginary Audience begins to drop off as predicted by developmental theory, the next

three year age range (23-26 year-olds) was added to the ANOVA. This was in addition to

the previous four age ranges (9-12, 13-15, 16-18, and 19-22). Results indicated a

significant main effect of age on Imaginary Audience scores (F (4, 244) = 5.32, p < .001).

Post-hoc Sheffe tests showed that the 23-26 year-old age group scored significantly lower

(M = 2.04, SD = .58) on Imaginary Audience than the 13-15 year old age group (M =

2.46, SD = .62) and the 19-22 year old age group (M = 2.42, SD = .50), thus suggesting a

drop-off at age 23. There was no significant difference in Imaginary Audience scores

41
among the 9-12 year-old age group (M = 2.10, SD = .60), the 16-18 year-old age group

(M = 2.37, SD = .40), or the 23-26 year-old age group (M = 2.04, SD = .58). For a

graphical representation, please see figure 4.

When the 23-26 year-old age group was added to the interaction analysis

conducted between age and Facebook use on Imaginary Audience the interaction effect

was no longer significant (F (4, 233) = 1.80, p = .16). Similar to the pattern exhibited by

the other age groups, however, those high in Facebook use among 23-26 year-olds scored

higher on Imaginary Audience (M = 2.24, SD = .49) than those low in Facebook use (M =

1.89, SD = .49), although this was not a significant difference (please see figure 5). In

sum, then, Imaginary Audience scores rose significantly from the 9-12 year-old age

group to the 13-15 year old age group. Imaginary Audience did not differ significantly

from age 13 through age 22. It then dropped significantly for the23-26 year-old age

group, returning to the 9-12 year-old level. Across all ages, those high in Facebook use

scored higher on Imaginary Audience than those low in Facebook use, although this

difference was not always significant. For a graphical representation, please consult

figures 4 and 5.

42
 H6 predicted that, while controlling for age and self-consciousness, overall

Facebook use would be related to heightened Personal Fable scores among children,

adolescents, and adults. Similar to previous analyses, age was split into two groups:

children and adolescents aged 9-22 and adults over the age of 23. Subsequently, two

separate hierarchical regressions were used to test the relationship predicted by H6. The

child and adolescent sample was tested first. Both age and self-consciousness were

entered in step one and were significant (R = .27, R2 = .07 F (2, 212) = 8.44, p < .001).

Next, overall Facebook time was entered in step two. This was also significantly related

to Personal Fable scores (R = .32, F (3, 211) = 8.04, p < .001; R2 = .03, p < .01).

Individually, both self-consciousness ( = .20, p < .01) and overall Facebook use ( = .19,

p < .01) were significantly related to Personal Fable scores.

Next, the same analyses were run with an adult sample over the age of 23. When

entered on the first step of a hierarchical multiple regression, age and self-consciousness

were not significantly related to Personal Fable scores (R = .26, R2 = .07, F (2, 65) = 2.32,

43
p = n.s.). Overall Facebook usage was entered on step two. This model was also

insignificant (R = .26, F (3, 64) = 1.60, p = n.s.; R2 = .00, p = n.s.), with none of the

three variables significantly related to Personal Fable scores. Taken together, the results

from both the younger and adult samples provide mixed support for the relationship

proposed in H6. In sum, overall Facebook usage is related to increases in Personal Fable

scores among 9-22 year-olds, but is not significantly related for adults.

Adding to this, H7 predicted that the number of friends one has on Facebook

would be related to increases in Personal Fables scores. Like the previous hypothesis,

analyses were broken into two; one for a 9-22 year-old sample and the other for a sample

of adults over the age of 23. For both groups, age and self-consciousness were entered as

control variables on the first step. This was significant for the younger sample (R = .27,

R2 = .07, F (2, 65) = 8.44, p < .001) but not the older sample (R = .26, R2 = .07, F (2, 65)

= 2.32, p = n.s.). Once number of Facebook friends was added to the model, it remained

significant for the younger sample (R = .28, F (3, 211) = 5.80, p < .001) although the R2

change was not significant (R2 = .00, p = n.s.). The model for the adult sample was still

not significant (R = .27, F (3, 64) = 1.70, p = n.s.; R2 = .01, p = n.s.). For the younger

sample, self-consciousness was a significant predictor of Personal Fable scores ( = .26, p

< .001), while ones number of friends was not ( = .06, p = n.s.). For the older sample,

neither self-consciousness ( = .17, p = n.s.) nor number of Facebook friends ( = -.09, p

= n.s.) was significantly related to Personal Fable scores. Together, these findings do not

support H7.

The first two research questions, RQ1a and RQ1b, asked if gender would

moderate the relationship between overall Facebook usage, the Imaginary Audience, and

44
the Personal Fable. First, overall Facebook usage was dichotomized using a median split

at 45 minutes of use. Using the data from the 9-22 year old sample, an ANCOVA was

then used to test this research question, with age and self-consciousness entered as

control variables. This analysis indicated a significant main effect of both overall

Facebook use (F (1, 213) = 11.30, p < .001) and gender (F (1, 213) = 6.93, p < .01).

Estimated marginal means indicated that males (M = 2.42, SD = .56) scored higher than

females (M = 2.32, SD = .52), in contrast to previously published findings. Additionally,

estimated marginal means indicated that those low in overall Facebook usage (M = 2.20,

SD = .52) scored significantly lower on a measure of Personal Fable than those high in

Facebook usage (M = 2.53, SD = .51). The interaction between gender and overall

Facebook time, however, was not significant (F (1, 213) = .07, p = n.s.). In total, males

and those higher in Facebook use scored significantly higher on Imaginary Audience than

females and those low in Facebook use. Gender, however, did not moderate this

relationship.

This same analysis was then run with Personal Fable as the outcome variable in

order to answer RQ1b. Again, both the main effect of overall Facebook time (F (1, 215)

= 9.98, p < .001) and gender (F (1, 215) = 23.92, p < .01) were significant. Those high in

Facebook use scored higher (M = 2.78, SD = .68) on the measure of Personal Fable than

those low in Facebook use (M = 2.48, SD = .60). As predicted by previous findings,

males (M = 2.82, SD = .72) scored higher in Personal Fable than females (M = 2.47, SD =

.56). Similar to the finding with Imaginary Audience, the interaction between overall

Facebook use and gender was not significant (F (1, 215) = 0.00, p = n.s.). Taken together,

these findings indicate that gender does not moderate the relationship between overall

45
Facebook use and either Imaginary Audience or Personal Fable. Individually, however,

both gender and overall Facebook use are significantly related to Imaginary Audience

and Personal Fable, such that males and those higher in Facebook use score higher on

these outcome variables. These findings help to answer the questions posed in RQ1a and

RQ2b.

Finally, to answer the remaining research question that asked about the

relationship between the length of Facebook membership, the Imaginary Audience, and

the Personal Fable, two separate hierarchical multiple regressions were run. Using the 9-

22 year-old sample data, and with Imaginary Audience as the outcome variable, age and

self-consciousness were entered on the first step (R = .54, R2 = .29, F (2, 210) = 42.76, p

< .001). Length of Facebook membership was entered on step two. This model was

significant as well (R = .60, F (3, 209) = 28.67, p < .001), although the R2 change was not

(R2 = .00, p = n.s.). Individually, self-consciousness scores ( = .49, p < .001) were

significantly related to Imaginary Audience scores, although neither age ( = -.01, p =

n.s.) nor length of Facebook membership were ( = .06, p = n.s.). With Personal Fable as

the outcome variable, age and self-consciousness were significant on step one (R = .27, F

(2, 210) = 8.44, p < .001) and the model was significant when length of Facebook

membership was entered on step two (R = .27, F (3, 209) = 5.63, p < .001), although the

change in R2 was not significantly different (R2 = .00, p = n.s.). Individually, self-

consciousness ( = .26, p < .001) was significantly related to Personal Fable score. Again,

neither age ( = .08, p = n.s.) nor length of Facebook membership ( = .03, p = n.s.) was

a significant predictor variable. These results indicate that Facebook membership has no

relationship to either Imaginary Audience or Personal Fable, thereby answering RQ2.

46
Additional Analyses

In an effort to make more sense of the relationship between Facebook use,

Imaginary Audience, and Personal Fable, a mediation analysis using the 9-22 year-old

data was conducted. Here, Facebook use was entered as the independent variable,

Imaginary Audience was the mediating variable, and Personal Fable was the dependent

variable. Imaginary Audience was chosen as the possible mediating variable because it is

a precondition to the experience of the Personal Fable (Elkind, 1967). Given the findings

of H3a, which indicated a significant relationship between overall Facebook use and

Imaginary Audience score among 9-22 year-olds ( = .20, p < .001), and the findings of

H6, which indicated a significant relationship between overall Facebook use and Personal

Fable scores among 9-22 year-olds ( = .19, p < .01), a hierarchical multiple regression

was conducted between the mediating variable (Imaginary Audience) and the dependent

variable (Personal Fable).

Similar to previous analyses, both age and self-consciousness were entered in step

one (R = .26, R2 = .07, F (2, 209) = 7.69, p < .001). Next, Imaginary Audience was

entered in step two, with a resulting change in R2 of .28 (p < .001). Individually, the

variable of interest, Imaginary Audience, was significantly related to Personal Fable ( =

.62, p < .001). Therefore, the three relationships necessary for mediation analyses all

indicated significant findings for the variables of interest.

With this in mind, Imaginary Audience was added to the model with overall

Facebook use as the independent variable and Personal Fable as the dependent variable.

Age and self-consciousness were entered on the first step (R = .26, R2 = .07, F (2, 209) =

7.69, p < .001). Next, both overall Facebook time and Imaginary Audience were entered

47
on step two (R = .59, F (4, 207) = 27.62, p < .001; R2 = .28, p < .001).Specifically,

Imaginary Audience was significantly related to Personal Fable ( = .61, p < .001). With

Imaginary Audience in the model, however, overall Facebook use was no longer

significantly related to Personal Fable ( = .07, p = n.s.), thereby reveling a full mediation

effect (Baron & Kenney, 1986) (please see figure 6).

FIGURE 6: MEDIATING EFFECT OF IMAGINARY AUDIENCE

Overall .19*
Personal
Facebook
Usage Fable

Imaginary
Audience

Overall .20** .62**

Facebook Personal
Usage Fable

.07

* indicates p < .01

** indicates p < .001
Reported coefficients are standardized beta weights

48
 CHAPTER 5

DISCUSSION

Overall, the results of this study suggest a general and positive association

between overall Facebook use, Imaginary Audience, and Personal Fable scores,

especially for those aged 9-22. Taking the results together, it is possible to understand the

cycle that a Facebook user may go through in order to go from initial Facebook use to

heightened Imaginary Audience, to Facebook customization, and back, resulting in

increased Facebook use. First, results indicate that Behavioral Rehearsal mediates the

relationship between overall Facebook use and Imaginary Audience. Conceptually,

Behavioral Rehearsal is a three phase theoretical mechanism, where, before engaging in a

new behavior, an individual compares themselves to others, thinks about how they can

achieve the desired behavior, and then acts toward achieving that behavior.

Tying this mechanism to the current study, it is possible to imagine a Facebook

user comparing his or her profile to those of others, in order to see and better understand

the norms of their set of friends and acquaintances on Facebook. Theoretically, the user

would begin to think about how they could exhibit certain positively-viewed facets of

their identity on their profile page for all members of their Facebook community to see,

all the while hiding personality and identity traits that are perceived as unattractive or

unappealing. Finally, after thinking about these changes, and as predicted by Behavioral

Rehearsal, the user will go offline and change their behavior in certain, premeditated

ways in order to achieve their conceived identity. They will then bring this behavior

change back online to Facebook, in photo or status update, for example. As the results of

this survey study indicate, this almost constant reaction to perceived others on Facebook

49
heightens ones Imaginary Audience, the belief that unseen others are constantly thinking

about and judging you. This finding of Behavioral Rehearsal mediation is an important

finding because it provides a theoretical mechanism for understanding the relationship

between Facebook usage and increases in Imaginary Audience scores among still-

developing children and adolescents.

This mediation analysis, however, was not the only significant finding to emerge

from this data. For example, results indicated a significant positive relationship between

Imaginary Audience scores and Facebook customization, even after controlling for ones

age, level of self-consciousness, and overall Facebook usage. This is a significant finding

when coupled with the previous mediation analysis. After a Facebook user begins the

cognitive process of Behavioral Rehearsal by comparing themselves to others and

thinking about how they can change their Facebook profile, which is associated with

heightened levels of Imaginary Audience, they then must customize their Facebook

profile page in order to accentuate and show off these changes, thereby completing the

process of Behavioral Rehearsal. Although it could be argued that those who use

Facebook more would naturally engage in more customization behaviors, it is important

to remember that this relationship between Imaginary Audience and Facebook

customization occurred while controlling for both ones level of self-consciousness and

the overall time spent on Facebook. Other findings from this research study suggest that

Facebook customization is related to increases in overall Facebook usage, as users spend

more and more time on their profiles while updating and changing their online identity.

Taken together, then, we can see that adolescent users of Facebook complete a

cycle of usage. First, after logging on to Facebook, users begin the cognitive processes of

50
Behavioral Rehearsal, which is related to increases in Imaginary Audience. In order to

fully react to this perceived Imaginary Audience, it seems that users engage in more and

more customization practices, such as changing their profile picture, updating their status,

or changing their profile information. In doing so, they complete the process of

Behavioral Rehearsal. In an effort to monitor their online identity and change it when it is

perceived as necessary, users spend more and more time on Facebook, thereby

completing the cycle. As perceived norms about what one should have on ones profiles,

or what behaviors and activities one should be engaged in change, adolescents start again

the first stage of Behavioral Rehearsal, beginning the cycle anew.

This cycle is supported by other results as well. When ages were broken into

developmentally-significant ranges, there was a main effect of age on Imaginary

Audience scores. Specifically, participants aged 13-15 and 19-22 scored significantly

higher than those aged 9-12. The 16-18 year-old age group scored higher on Imaginary

Audience as well, although the mean was not significantly different from the mean score

of 9-12 year-olds. Interestingly, the interaction between Facebook usage, age, and

Imaginary Audience neared significance. By examining the marginal means, results

indicated that those high in Facebook use score higher on Imaginary Audience than those

low in Facebook use. This was a trend for all four age groups, but was significantly

different for the 9-12 and 13-15 year old age groups.

When the next three year age range (23-26) was added as a fifth group, age

remained significant as a main effect, with the Imaginary Audience score of the 23-26

year-old age group dropping off significantly from that of the 13-15, 16-18, and 19-22

year old age groups. Although the interaction between Facebook use, age, and Imaginary

51
Audience was not significant (p = .16), the trend still held that those high in Facebook,

even among the 23-26 year-old age group, scored significantly higher on Imaginary

Audience than those low in Facebook use. This would seem to yield support for the

Facebook-Imaginary Audience cycle discussed above because those who spent more time

on Facebook had higher Imaginary Audience scores, regardless of age. This is important

to note, especially given the overall means of Imaginary Audience scores among the

heavy Facebook users were far higher for their respective age than they have been

reported in the extant literature.

It is possible to argue, of course, for a selective exposure hypothesis, such that

those naturally high in Imaginary Audience spend more time on Facebook than those low

in Imaginary Audience. Although in this paper we have argued for a causal relationship

between Facebook use and increases in Imaginary Audience scores by using both theory

and empirical findings, the correlational nature of this survey study does not allow for the

use of effects language. It does appear, however, that findings do not support the

selective exposure argument in a number of ways. First, it is important to remember that

adults were included in this research study, in order to see if any relationships found

among still-developing children and adolescents would carry into adulthood. It does not

appear that this is the case. None of the hypotheses that predicted increases in Imaginary

Audience or Personal Fable among heavy adult Facebook users were supported by the

data. If the observed relationships were the result of selective exposure, one would expect

that these relationships would hold across the lifespan, rather than change abruptly in

early adulthood. In fact, it seems that these findings would argue for a developmental

phenomenon rather than selective exposure.

52
 Additionally, if selective exposure was the correct theoretical mechanism for

understanding the relationship between Facebook use and the Imaginary Audience, we

would expect that heavy Facebook usage would be related to higher Imaginary Audience

scores across all age groups. Although the data did trend in this direction, it was only

significant for the 9-12 and 13-15 year old age groups. There were no significant

interactions between Facebook use, age, and Imaginary Audience over the age of 16. The

trend between high Facebook use and high Imaginary Audience eventually disappeared

once older age groups were examined. Once again, this seems to argue for a

developmental explanation rather than selective exposure, underscoring the important

role that Facebook may play in child and adolescent developmental growth.

While the results regarding the relationship between Facebook use and the

Imaginary Audience generally supported the hypotheses, the results regarding the

relationship between Facebook use and the Personal Fable were not as strongly

supported. The one significant result in this area did indicate that, similar to its

relationship with the Imaginary Audience, overall Facebook use was associated with

higher scores of Personal Fable. This was only true for the 9-22 year old age group; no

relationships between Facebook use and the Personal Fable were significant for the over

23 years of age adult sample. Interestingly, the number of friends a participant had was

not related to Personal Fable scores for all age groups. Although the number of friends

one has may still be seen as a commodity on Facebook, it does not appear that this then

relates to the feeling of specialness that is the hallmark of the Personal Fable.

Theoretically, however, the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable are

related, which might suggest that Personal Fable scores would increase over time as

53
Imaginary Audience levels remain high. Given the finding that Imaginary Audience

scores in this sample were relatively constant from age 13 to age 22, and that respondents

only completed the survey at one point in time, it is possible that Personal Fable scores

had not had the time to rise to a level that would produce significant findings. Therefore,

longitudinal data would be better suited to examine relationships of this nature.

Finally, results indicate that males scored significantly higher than females on the

measure of Personal Fable, replicating the results of Elkind and Bowen (1979), Gray and

Hudson (1984), and Lapsley et al. (1989). In contrast to these findings, however, males

also scored higher on Imaginary Audience, which is an interesting new finding.

Considering that more contemporary research, including the findings of this research

study, have found higher levels of Imaginary Audience (e.g. Schwartz, Maynard, &

Uzelac, 2008) than research published decades ago, it is possible that the relationship

between gender and the Imaginary Audience has changed over time. Although there were

gender differences among the outcome variables of Imaginary Audience and Personal

Fable, gender did not moderate the relationship between overall Facebook use and these

developmental variables. Additionally, the length of time that one had a Facebook profile

had no association with their level of Imaginary Audience or Personal Fable. This finding

might indicate that the cycle of Facebook use and Imaginary Audience presented earlier

in this paper occurs relatively quickly over time, underscoring the importance in

understanding Facebooks role in human development.

54
Theoretical and Practical Implications

Overall, the findings of this study generally contrast the robust series of findings

in the extant literature on the Imaginary Audience. For example, using the NIAS as a

measure, Vartanian (1997) replicated the findings of Lapsley et al. (1989). The NIAS is

the same measure that was used in the present study; here, however, findings did not

follow similar patterns. In the past, as measured by the NIAS, both Imaginary Audience

and Personal Fable peaked in early adolescence, before tailing off before age 16. In this

study, Imaginary Audience scores rose quickly between the 9-12 and 13-15 year-old age

groups, in accordance with previous findings. As indicated previously, however, this

heightened level of Imaginary Audience remained relatively constant from age 13 to age

22. Imaginary Audience scores were especially heightened for those high in Facebook

use. Therefore, one possible explanation for the changes in the developmental trajectories

of Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable may be heavy Facebook usage among

children and adolescents. A host of other factors not measured by this study are almost

certainly at play, which together result in changes in the trajectories of these

developmental variables. The results of this study, however, do shed light on one variable

by relating it to the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable. This is an important

finding for a number of reasons. First, with the sheer number of children and adolescents

on Facebook, as well as the vast amount of time that many of them spend using it, it is

important to consider the role that Facebook might play in not only daily life, but

developmentally as well. This may have serious implications for the future, as more and

more children around the world begin to use social media in even higher quantities and at

earlier ages. Therefore, it may be important to consider other forms of social media

55
because the affordances of these technologies are similar to those of Facebook. Similar to

Facebook, most other social media allow users to create some type of profile, control the

type of information that they present to the world, and monitor the identity that they

present on their account. As evidenced here, these affordances may change the way we

think about ourselves and others.

Second, considering a developmental trajectory of Imaginary Audience and

Personal Fable that lasts until early adulthood, its is important to think about the overall

cycle of Facebook use. Examining a number of results together, we offered a theoretical

model to explain an adolescent Facebook users progress from Facebook use to

Imaginary Audience, from Imaginary Audience to Facebook customization, and from

Facebook customization back to Facebook use. Results indicated that higher levels of

Facebook use were positively related to Behavioral Rehearsal which, in turn, was related

to higher levels of Imaginary Audience. On the backwards loop of this model, higher

Imaginary Audience led to higher Facebook customization levels, which then led to

higher Facebook use, thereby starting the cycle again. Thinking about this model along

with our finding of a change in the trajectory of Imaginary Audience, one can see the role

the cycle of Facebook use and Imaginary Audience might play on Imaginary Audience

scores across a wide age range.

Whereas previous findings have indicated that Imaginary Audience scores peak

around age 13-15 before dissipating relatively quickly, our findings indicate that scores

remain high from age 13 until age 22. Therefore, it seems important to not only consider

the role that Facebook use might play on other variables, but the ways in which Facebook

use can create a cycle, making it difficult for heavy users to develop in a normal and

56
healthy manner. Considering that the current group of adolescents uses social media, such

as Facebook, in higher rates than any previous age group, we must consider Facebook use

in conjunction with the cycles of Facebook use. With the affordances that Facebook

provides its users to customize their profile and control their overall Facebook

experience, it is important to not only consider and measure Facebook use, but also, the

specific ways in which users engage with it. Theoretically, this would have implications

for the ways that we think about Facebook use and how we study relationships between

its use and relevant outcome variables. Thinking about the specific ways and cycles of

Facebook use may provide the academic community with valuable information about the

processes at play within the overall variable of Facebook use.

Finally, and most practically, the results of our additional analyses indicate a

relationship between overall Facebook use, the Imaginary Audience, and the Personal

Fable, such that the Imaginary Audience mediates this relationship. Although the results

of this study were not generally supportive of the Personal Fable hypotheses, it may be

that not enough time has passed among our sample for heightened levels of Imaginary

Audience to raise levels of the Personal Fable. Given that a number of our results

indicated that higher levels of Facebook were related in increases in Imaginary Audience,

it may just be a matter of time before we see higher levels of Personal Fable among the

adolescent population. This is significant for a number of reasons. First, Personal Fable

has been found to be related to feelings of invulnerability and risk-taking (Lapsley et al.,

1989). In the past, Personal Fable scores generally followed the same pattern as

Imaginary Audience scores, peaking between age 13 and 15, before quickly tailing off.

While Personal Fable may result in serious outcomes for this age group, older adolescents

57
have greater access to alcohol and drugs, cars which increase their mobility, and less

parental supervision, which, coupled with risky ideation, could lead to even more serious

consequences and outcomes. Therefore, it is important to consider the relationship

between Facebook use and Personal Fable in more detail.

Limitations

The main limitations of the study arise from its sample. Although efforts were

made to diversify the sample, especially in terms of geography, educational background

and race, the majority of the sample was white. Among the sample older than 18, most

participants were either college educated or currently in college. This could have

implications for our findings, given that Facebook use is nearly ubiquitous across race

and socioeconomic status in the United States. Additionally, we attempted to make

longitudinal claims in regards to our data and findings although the survey design was

cross-sectional. In examining the demographical data across all ages, we have no reason

to believe that any age group differs significantly from one another on gender, race, and

socioeconomic status; however, without truly longitudinal data or the ability to follow

particular individuals over the course of a few years, it is impossible to tell if the age

groups in our sample are truly equal in terms of their Facebook use, Imaginary Audience

and Personal Fable. Longitudinal data would give use the ability to make truly causal

claims in regard to the relationship between Facebook and Imaginary Audience.

Finally, throughout this paper, we have made theoretical arguments that point

toward a causal relationship between Facebook use and Imaginary Audience. It must be

noted, however, that due to the survey design of this research study, it is not possible to

make such claims with our data. What we strove to do, instead, was to use correlational

58
data in order to back up our theoretically causal claims. We believe that, theoretically, it

is possible to argue for a causal relationship between Facebook use and Imaginary

Audience and attempted to make this claim in the literature review section of this paper.

Using the correlational data collected from our sample, we tried to provide evidence for

these causal claims. While this is a major limitation of this study, it does illustrate the

need for a longitudinal study similar to the cross-sectional one conducted here.

Directions for Future Research

The findings of this research study point toward a number of new avenues for the

study of Facebook use. First, a longitudinal examination of the relationship between

Facebook use and any number of developmental variables would be beneficial to the

academic community. While the results of this study do suggest that Facebook use might

be related to changes in the trajectory of developmental phenomenon, it would be helpful

to examine these changes by following individual participants over the course of many

years while also measuring other possible predictor variables. In doing so, we would be

able to more accurately pinpoint changes in developmental behaviors while noting the

effect that Facebook might have in these changes. Next, the results of this study indicate

that it would be helpful to not only examine overall Facebook use, but also specific ways

in which users engage with Facebook. Although overall Facebook use, as measured in

minutes, did provide useful information in our understanding of the role that Facebook

plays on Imaginary Audience and Personal Fable, it was the examination of processes

specific to Facebook, such as profile customization or Behavioral Rehearsal, that

provided important information and allowed us to create a theoretical model for

understanding the cycle of Facebook behavior and Imaginary Audience. Additionally, it

59
would be helpful to better understand the ways in which children and adolescents think

about a social media site, such as Facebook. For example, research should be conducted

in order to understand whether children and adolescents conceptualize social networking

as interpersonal or mass communication. It is possible that certain aspects of Facebook

are conceptualized as interpersonal communications, whereas other aspects are seen as

mass communications. Finally, future research should be completed examining the

influence that Facebook use might have on Personal Fable. As indicated above,

heightened Personal Fable levels among college-aged individuals may result in more

risk-taking behaviors and therefore, in more negative outcomes.

60
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 Drew Patrick Cingel

Education

Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

May 2012
Master of the Arts in Communication
GPA: 4.0

The Pennsylvania State University, Schreyer Honors College,

University Park, Pennsylvania
May 2010
Bachelor of the Arts in Media Studies, with Honors and Distinction
Bachelor of the Arts in Psychology with Distinction
GPA: 3.77

Awards and Grants

Wake Forest University: Summer Research Support recipient

Wake Forest University Graduate Teaching Assistantship: 2-year recipient
Wake Forest University Graduate Research Assistantship: 1-semester recipient
The Pennsylvania State University: Undergraduate Psychophysiology Grant
The Pennsylvania State University: 7-time College of Communications Deans
List designee
The Pennsylvania State University: 4-year Schreyer Honors College Academic
Excellence Scholarship recipient
The Pennsylvania State University: 1-year Lawrence G. and Ellen M. Foster
Merit Scholarship recipient

Positions Held

Wake Forest Information Systems, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Member, Collaborative Technologies Team, September 2011-May 2012
- Assist with implementation of collaborative technologies on campus
- Assist marketing strategies to increase adoption of technologies
- Assist with data analysis of usability studies

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 Wake Forest Student Athlete Services, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Athlete Tutor, September 2011-May 2012
- Tutor athletes for class Empirical Research Methods in
Communication, Intercultural Communication, and Health
Communication

Wake Forest Information Systems, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Communications Intern, May 2011-May 2012
- Create, update, and review survey materials for department
- Distribute survey materials and analyze collected data
- Create reports of findings for distribution within department
- Develop plan for implementation of social networking presence
- Assist with marketing of department within university community

Wake Forest Department of Communication, Winston-Salem, North

Carolina
Teaching Assistant, September 2010-May 2012
- Help plan curriculum
- Assist with creation of tests and assignments
- Assist with grading and answering student questions
- Teach labs to integrate and review key concepts

Wake Forest Department of Communication, Winston-Salem, North

Carolina
Research Assistant, September 2010-May 2012
- Assist with research design
- Assist with instrument development
- Recruit research participants
- Assist with data analysis
- Co-author scholarly works

Academic Experience

Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Principal Investigator of Graduate Masters Thesis Spring 2012
Understanding the Imaginary Audience and the Personal Fable
in a Social Media Environment

The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania

Principal Investigator of Undergraduate Honors Thesis Spring 2010
Texting, Techspeak, and Tweens: The Relationship between Text
Messaging and Grammar Skills

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Publications

Cingel, D.P. & Sundar, S.S. (in press). Texting, techspeak, and tweens: The
relationship between text messaging and English grammar skills, New
Media and Society.

Works under Review

Cingel, D. P. & Krcmar, M. (in review). Parental attitudes toward preschool

directed media, Communication Studies.

Krcmar, M., Cingel, D. P., Silva, E. R., & Malsin, M. (in review). Comparing
preschool-directed media to play and education, Media Psychology.

Krcmar, M. & Cingel, D. P. (in review). Developing a measure of parental

motivations toward preschool-directed media use, Journal of Children
and Media.

Conference Papers

Cingel, D. P., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Texting, techspeak, and tweens: The
relationship between text messaging and English grammar skills.
Presented at National Communication Association Conference, New
Orleans, LA, November.

Krcmar, M. & Cingel, D. P. (2012) Parental Attitudes toward Preschool-Directed

Media. Presented at International Communication Association
Conference, Phoenix, AZ, May.

Conference Papers under Review

Krcmar, M., Cingel, D. P., Silva, E. R., & Malsin, M. (in review). Comparing
preschool-directed media to play and education. National Communication
Association Conference, Orlando, FL, November.

Cingel, D. P. & Krcmar, M. (in review). Developing a measure of parental

motivations toward preschool-directed media use. National
Communication Association Conference, Orlando, FL, November.

68