Examining the Relationships between Perceived Social Presence, Narcissism, Gender and Frequency of Text Messaging

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between perceived social presence, narcissism, gender and frequency of text messaging among university undergraduates. A total of 247 volunteers from two universities in southeast Nigeria participated in the study. Their ages ranged from 18-28 years with a mean age of (Mage = 24.79 years, SD = 3.10). Three different instruments were used to elicit information from respondents through survey, while hierarchical regression was used for data analyses. Consistent with stated hypotheses, findings revealed that perceptions of message understanding, affective understanding, emotional interdependence, and behavioral interdependence were significantly related to frequency of test messaging. But contrary to speculations, copresence, attention allocation, and narcissism were not significantly related to frequency of text messaging. More so, contrary to speculation gender was negatively related to frequency of text messaging. We discussed the implications and limitations of the study. Also, suggestions for further studies were highlighted.