ABSTRACT
Developed by sociologist Erving Goffman, face is the desire for an individual to make a favorable impression on others (Goffman, 1967) by establishing socially acceptable attributes (Goffman, 1955). Goffman (1959) described face in the terms of a theatrical performance in which we are all actors. Face is established, maintained, and negotiated through communication between communication partners (Cupach & Metts, 1994). Because of the interactional nature of face, individuals can threaten their partner’s, or even their own, face performance (Goffman, 1959). In order to maintain face during interactions, individual engage in preventive and/or corrective facework to either avoid face-threats or to rebuild face following a face-threat (Cupach & Metts, 1994). In the 60 years since its development, interpersonal communication scholars have applied face theory to several concepts such as drinking behaviors (Romo et al. 2015), dating after a divorce (Miller, 2009), and work spouse relationships (McBride & Bergen 2015; McBride et al., 2020). Face theory is a rich impetus for continued interpersonal communication research.
