[Air-l] CFP: Romancing (on) the internet
Patrick B. O'Sullivan
posull at ilstu.edu
Mon Dec 6 09:12:01 PST 2004
Below is a Call for Papers for a special issue of the Electronic Journal of
Communication. Thanks!
CALL FOR PAPERS
Electronic Journal of Communication (EJC)
Special Issue: Romancing (on) the internet
Do romance and technology mix?
Is it possible that computer-mediated communication (CMC), once considered
a cold and impersonal tool suited only for terse business information
exchanges, might actually be capable of helping lovers find one another and
build romantic relationships? In recent years, scholarly studies, the
popular press, and our everyday experiences indicate that the answer is a
definite Yes! However, our knowledge of the extent of this phenomenon
remains fragmented and underdeveloped, as does an understanding of the
communication processes involved.
This special issue will present the best new research on romance via the
internet. We invite scholarship that addresses the topic broadly,
conceptualized to include romantic relationships initiated, developed,
maintained, transitioned, and/or ended via one or more of the various
internet-based communication technologies.
Empirical pieces, both qualitative and quantitative, are welcome for
consideration, as are reviews of literature and theory (think) pieces.
What each submission should have in common is a solid contribution to
literature on romance and communication technologies. Of particular
interest is scholarship that takes a communicative approach to the topic,
i.e., that examines a chosen aspect through the lens of interaction and
communication theories. In other words, scholarship that approaches CMC as
an acronym for communication mediated by computer to reflect a
foregrounding of the communicators and their communication process (rather
than the communication hardware).
The following questions are only some of the possible topics but reflect a
communicator/communication emphasis:
· What are the parallels and what are the differences between
relationships experienced primarily online and those experienced primarily
face-to-face?
· Are relationships experienced primarily online built and maintained
with different practices, perceptions, and processes than those experienced
primarily face-to-face?
· Do the conventional relationships sequences or phases, observed for
relationships experienced primarily face-to-face, also accurately describe
relationships experienced primarily online?
· How do partners in relationships experienced primarily online
manage the dialectical tensions that exist in relationships experienced
primarily face-to-face?
· Do relationships experienced primarily online exhibit perceptual
distortions (positive and/or negative)? Are those distortions different
than those in relationships experienced primarily face-to-face?
· Are online relationship activities as real, substantial, and
consequential as those experienced face-to-face?
· What is lost or missing in relationships experienced primarily
online and what is lost or missing in relationships experienced primarily
face-to-face?
· Are relationships experienced primarily online real (whatever
that might mean) or virtual (whatever that might mean)?
· Do assumptions about relationships, which emerge from the
literature on face-to-face relationships, apply to relationships
experienced primarily online? What insights do relationships experienced
primarily online provide that help scholars strengthen existing theory
about all relationships (online and offline)?
The special issue is scheduled for publication in late 2005. Deadline for
completed manuscripts is Monday, May 2, 2005. Submissions can be either
electronic (.doc or .rtf format only, please) or hard copies. Inquiries
about possible topics are welcome. Submissions and inquiries should be
directed to:
Patrick B. OSullivan, PhD
Special Issue Editor, EJOC
Department of Communication 4480
Illinois State University
Normal, IL 61790
posull at ilstu.edu
(309) 438-2688 voice
(309) 438-3048 fax
******************************
Patrick B. O'Sullivan, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Communication 4480
Illinois State University
Normal, IL 61790
309-438-2688 voice
309-438-3048 fax
posull at ilstu.edu
http://www.communication.ilstu.edu/posull/homepage
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