LAUSR

This study explores the role of adult attachment dynamics in people’s self-presentation and self-concealment in online and offline spaces. A total of 145 bloggers took the Experiences of Close Relationships Scale (Brennan, Clark, & Shaver, 1998) and answered questions about their blog persona and their offline persona. A mixed-methods approach combined qualitative content analysis with quantitative analyses to examine and compare adjective lists describing online and offline personas. In comparison to securely attached individuals, individuals with high levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance presented themselves in more discrepant, contradictory ways online versus offline. Specifically, blog personas were more self-revealing and included more negative traits in individuals with high attachment anxiety and avoidance, whereas offline personas were described as more actively self-concealing and included fewer negative traits. Also, the offline self-presentations of securely attached individuals were more focused on caregiving of others, whereas blog personas were limited to traits of the self. Findings underscore the utility of attachment theory and theories of the self that emphasize multiplicity in examining people’s use of virtual spaces to cultivate and share themselves with others.