Liesel Sharabi

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Associate Professor at Arizona State University

In response to calls to recognize that both face‐to‐face (FtF) interaction and technologically mediated communication (TMC) often occur in the same relationships, we introduce a communicative interdependence perspective with a central tenet that relational closeness is associated with interconnections among modes of communication. We examined this...

Matching algorithms are a central feature of online dating, yet little research exists on their effectiveness—or people’s perceptions of their effectiveness—for recommending a mate. Accordingly, this study explores the effects of people’s beliefs in the legitimacy of algorithms on their first date with an online dating partner. Longitudinal survey...

The current mixed-methods study reports the results of a cross-sectional survey of 205 online daters and uses the Investment Model to examine the antecedents of commitment in online dating and users’ decisions to delete their online dating account(s). We hypothesized that the quality of alternatives, investments, and satisfaction with the online da...

This study uses an experimental design to examine the uncertainty-reducing effect of online dating profiles on initial first-date interactions. Zero-history dyads (N = 108) participated in a brief first meeting in the lab, where they were randomly assigned to either a dating profile (experimental) condition or a no-profile control group. Results in...

What do couples’ activities and behaviors on Instagram reveal about the quality of their relationships? To answer this question, we surveyed couples (N = 178) about their perceptions of their relationships and analyzed 3,270 of their recent Instagram posts. Actor and partner effects were found between relational quality and engagement with the rela...

Computational social science (CSS) is rapidly advancing knowledge about human behavior. In this chapter, we explore how computational methods are being applied in research on online dating. We trace the history of computerized dating and synthesize key findings from CSS across the stages of online dating, ranging from profile construction to accoun...

Online dating is common in the United States. We draw on communicated narrative sense-making (CNSM) theory to explore how online daters reflect on the development of their relationships. Using Buehlman et al.’s (1992) Oral History Interview as a guide, we collected courtship stories from 50 U.S. adults who were engaged or married to a partner that...

Human matchmaking has existed for millennia and continues to be an important means of relationship initiation. Yet little is known about the matchmaking process or the role of formal intermediaries in mate selection. To begin exploring this topic, a two-part study was conducted using proprietary data from a professional matchmaking company. Study 1...

Despite the ubiquity of dating apps, there is little longitudinal research examining the mental health and well-being of dating app users. To fill this void, this study takes a social compensation approach to exploring dating app users’ burnout experiences (i.e., emotional exhaustion, inefficacy, and depersonalization) over time. Four hundred ninet...

In this piece, we propose that entertainment media is an understudied source of misinformation and relationship science is an understudied domain of misinformation. We discuss two ways that relationship misinformation can appear in entertainment media – in the form of blatant claims and subtle content – and we provide an example of each from realit...

This study takes a relational stage approach to understanding the role of online dating in the progression of relationships toward marriage. Fifty interviews were conducted with individuals from across the United States (ages 21–62; Mage = 33.42) who were married or engaged to someone they met via online dating. The results present a comprehensive...

Drawing on social ecology theory, this study compares the marriages of people who met in online dating to those who were introduced offline. A survey was administered to a sample of 923 married U.S. adults, roughly half of whom met their spouse in online dating. The results provided evidence of an online dating effect, with online daters reporting...

Relationships are influenced by how and where they begin. This chapter focuses on the initiation of romantic and non-romantic relationships (e.g., friendships), including those initiated online. We discuss what types of people are selected as friends and romantic partners as well as the role of context in initial social interaction. First, we first...

The COVID-19 pandemic upended home life for couples across the globe. Many couples faced increased relational uncertainty and interference from a partner as a result of stay at home and lockdown orders. This study uses relational turbulence theory to examine how (a) relational uncertainty and (b) partner interdependence are associated with cognitio...

This mixed-methods study explores dating app use within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) community. LGBTQIA+ dating app users (N = 231) from across the U.S. were surveyed about their relationship initiation experiences. Thematic analysis was used to identify the benefits and challenges participants fa...

The Fall 2022 Dreamscape Learn (DSL) research studies included in-depth analyses that provided rich insights into a variety of DSL assets that were utilized in four undergraduate introductory biology classes in the School of Life Sciences (SOLS): BIO 181 for campus immersion students, BIO 181 for digital immersion students, BIO 100 for campus immer...

The transition to cohabitation is a major developmental milestone for romantic couples, yet it is linked to myriad negative outcomes. This study extends the communication interdependence perspective (CIP) to understand the role of technology use in relationship transitions (i.e., the transition to cohabitation). Couples (N = 258 individuals) comple...

The goal of this study was to explore the positive association between concern related to COVID-19 and single individuals’ perceived changes to their partner preferences. In addition, we investigated the mediating role of fear of being single. Results indicated that people with greater COVID-19 concern perceived an increase in the importance of sta...

This study examines digitally enabled mate poaching on Ashley Madison, an online dating platform for extradyadic affairs. To explore mate poaching as a potential explanation for what drives users of Ashley Madison to transition their online relationships to offline encounters, we conducted a multinational survey of 1,676 users (88.5 percent male, M...

A distinguishing feature of contemporary relationships is the integration of technological mediation into routine social interaction. The communication interdependence perspective (CIP) explains how interpersonal technologies are interwoven with face-to-face relationships, but its conceptualization of integration is limited. To fill this gap, we ex...

A series of 27 meta-analyses was conducted to synthesize theoretical predictions, to date, of the relational turbulence model (RTM), which has informed relational turbulence theory (RTT). In line with theorized predictions, 12 random-effects meta-analyses (k = 9–15; n = 1,395–5,493) confirmed that RTM variables (i.e., self uncertainty, partner unce...

A textual relationship is defined as a relationship where intimacy with a partner is primarily sustained through text messaging. In a textual relationship, face-to-face (FtF) contact rarely, if ever, occurs. This study examines the quality of textual relationships and reasons for restricting communication to text-based channels. Participants comple...

This study examines associations between mechanisms of relational turbulence and demand/withdraw in couples with depressive symptoms. One hundred twenty-six couples in which one or both partners were professionally diagnosed with depression completed an online questionnaire. Actor effects appeared for relational uncertainty and interference from a...

Deception is a common strategy for securing a first date with someone from an online dating site. But does the possibility of a second date still exist if deception was used to get the first one? To address this question, we investigated the effects of online dating deception on people’s subsequent offline interactions. Online daters (N = 94) were...

The present study explores the relationship initiation process in online dating using participants’ (N = 105) naturally occurring email messages to a prospective romantic partner. Data were collected online at time one, and participants were recontacted at time two (after meeting their partner offline) to assess the likelihood of continued interact...

Tandem advances in mobile technologies and social networks have given rise to app-initiated romantic relationships. Little is understood, however, about the role of the device in this initiation. This experimental study explored the impact of “mere holding” of mobile devices on impressions formed when consuming dating app content. Mere holding (com...

This study uses a longitudinal design to investigate the effects of online dating sites on first date success. Participants were surveyed before their first date with someone from an online dating site (N = 186) and again after meeting their partner in person (N = 94). As part of the survey, they also supplied the e-mails they had sent to their par...

This study adopts an inductive and dyadic approach to illuminate how depression affects romantic relationships in people’s own words. Depressed couples (N = 135) responded to an open-ended item about ways that depression influences their romantic relationship. Content analytic results indicated eight categories of negative effects (emotional toll,...

To address a key gap in theorizing and research, we consider relational uncertainty as an explanation for why individuals experiencing depressive symptoms may be reluctant to talk about sensitive issues. We report closed-ended online survey data from 126 romantic couples in which one or both partners had been professionally diagnosed with depressio...