ABSTRACT
Media multiplexity theory (MMT) represents perhaps the most systematic attempt to explain the use of multiple media in interpersonal relationships. In Chapter 27, entitled“Media Multiplexity Theory: Explaining Tie Strength and Technology Use,” Andrew M. Ledbetter summarizes the theory’s intellectual tradition, its five central propositions, its research applications, and directions for further development of the theory. Building from Granovetter’s work on tie strength, MMT claims that (a) tie strength is positively associated with multiplexity, (b) tie strength, not medium, shapes communication, (c) tie strength and media use mutually cause each other, (d) media changes potently shape weak ties, and (e) groups create hierarchies of media use expectations. Recent work focuses on elaborating boundary conditions for the theory, including those arising from the nature of the relationship and from attitudes toward specific channels. Longitudinal research remains one of the most pressing needs for evaluation of the theory’s temporal claims. Ledbetter also calls for research aimed at clarifying the specific mechanisms that account for the bidirectional relationship between tie strength and media use.
