Sir/Ma'am,
I
am conducting a research project entitled "Relational Maintenance Via
Webcam for Deployed Military Members" as part of a class project at South
Dakota State University.
The purpose of the study is to attempt
to answer the following research questions about military members in a deployed
environment:
RQ1:
Why/why not/when use webcam technologies for relational maintenance?
RQ2: If
webcam technologies are used for relationship maintenance, how is it utilized
for this purpose successfully? What are
the benefits and drawbacks, and how are potential drawbacks avoided or
resolved?
You
are invited to participate in the study by completing the questionnaire below. I realize that your time is valuable and have
attempted to keep the requested information as brief and concise as possible.
It will take you approximately 15-20 minutes of your time. Your participation
in this project is voluntary. You may withdraw from the study at any time
without consequence.
There
are no
known risks and no direct benefits to you for participating in this
study.
Your
responses are strictly confidential. When the data and analysis are presented,
you will not be linked to the data by your name or duty position.
Please
assist me in my research and return the completed survey in a Microsoft Word
document attached to an e-mail no later than 6
Dec 14. Please submit your
survey to daniel.beaudoin@sdstate.edu.
Your consent is implied by the return of the completed questionnaire. Please keep this letter for your
information. If you have any questions, now or later, you may contact me at the
number below. Thank you very much for your time and assistance. If you have any
questions regarding your rights as a research participant in this study, you
may contact the SDSU Research Compliance Coordinator at 605-688-6975,
SDSU.IRB@sdstate.edu.
Very Respectfully,
Daniel Beaudoin
Military Deployment Webcam Communication
Survey
NOTES:
-Thank
you very much for being willing to take this questionnaire! Please be as honest as you can, and feel free
to provide as much information as you would like…more content is better! Please type your answers underneath each
question. If you are not comfortable
answering a question, that is perfectly fine; please just indicate so
underneath the question.
-When
I use the term "Webcam Communication" I mean conversing with others
using mediums such as Skype, Facetime, etc.
-"Relational
Maintenance" is defined as behaviors individuals engage in to sustain
desired relational characteristics like commitment, love, and satisfaction, and
which help preserve a relationship (Ogolsky & Bowers, 2012, p. 344).
-"Everyday
Talk" is defined as ordinary conversations between interactants, such as
making plans, gossiping, complaining, and small talk (Frisby, Mansson,
Booth-Butterfield, & Birmingham, 2011, p. 244).
-Thank
you again!
QUESTIONS:
Rank:
Service:
Sex:
1. When was your last deployment and how many times
have you been deployed?
2. Under what circumstances would you choose to
use Webcam Communication rather than telephonic communication, texting, or
e-mail? Why?
3. Would you ever avoid using Webcam Communication
with family/friends? If so, why?
4. On average per week, how often would you
communicate with family/friends using Webcam Communication?
4a. Was more sessions of communication via webcam
better for your relational maintenance with family/friends or worse? How?
5. On average, how long per session would you
spend talking with family members via webcam?
With friends?
5a. Was longer sessions of communication via
webcam better for your relational maintenance with family/friends or
worse? How?
6. If your use of Webcam Communication
increased, did you notice/hear about any corresponding increases in stress felt
by those you communicated with (e.g. spouse or children)?
7. What do you perceive are the advantages of
Webcam Communication in
maintaining your relationships with family/friends while on a military
deployment? Do you have any examples you
would like to share of Webcam Communication being especially advantageous for
relational maintenance?
7a. On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being the least
and 10 being the most advantageous), how advantageous was Webcam Communication
for you in maintaining your relationships with family/friends?
7b. Do you have any techniques, best practices,
routines that you used to make your Webcam Communication experience more
effective/efficient? If so, what?
8. What do you perceive are the disadvantages of
Webcam Communication in maintaining your relationships with family/friends
while on a military deployment? Do you
have any examples you would like to share of Webcam Communication being disadvantageous
for relational maintenance?
8a. On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being the least
and 10 being the most disadvantageous), how disadvantageous was Webcam Communication
for you in maintaining your relationships with family/friends?
8b. Do you have any recommendations of practices,
routines, etc. to avoid when using webcam communication? If so, what?
9. Was it ever stressful communicating via
webcam with family friends? (aside from technical difficulties) How?
10. If you identified any disadvantages with
communicating via webcam in maintaining your relationships with family/friends,
what were some ways you adapted to these challenges?
11. If you are a male and have a wife/girlfriend/fiancée, did
she initiate Webcam Communication more or less than you did?
12. Do you think that webcam use may
inadvertently encourage service members to share too much information with
family/friends to the detriment of relationships? Did you see this in your experience?
13. How often did you engage in specifically
"everyday talk" with family/friends via webcam? Did you ever deliberately avoid topics? How did engaging in everyday talk and topic
avoidance affect your stress level?
14. Do you have any final comments about Webcam Communication
while you were deployed?
References
Frisby, B. N., Byrnes, K., Mansson, D. H.,
Booth-Butterfield, M., & Birmingham, M. K.
(2011, July-August). Topic
avoidance, everyday talk, and stress in romantic military and non-military
couples. Communication Studies, 62
(3), 241-257. doi: 10.1080/10510974.2011.553982
Ogolsky, B. G. & Bowers, J. R. (2012).
A meta-analytic review of relationship maintenance and its
correlates. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 30 (3), 343-367. doi: 10.1177/0265407512463338