…digital media channels \u201cdon\u2019t distinguish between quality of relationships,\u201d he said. \u201cThey allow you to maintain relationships that would otherwise decay. Our data shows that if you don\u2019t meet people at the requisite frequencies, you\u2019ll drop down through the layers until eventually you drop out of the 150 and become \u2018somebody you once knew.\u2019 What we think is happening is that, if you don\u2019t meet sometime face to face, social media is slowing down the rate of decay.\u201d<\/p>\n
The result, then, can be a glut of old acquaintances that are not as easily forgotten online and which therefore stifle the development of newer, in-person friendships.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour available social time is limited, and you can either spend it face to face or on the internet,\u201d Dr. Dunbar said. If it\u2019s spent with people who are \u201cremote,\u201d whether geographically or just because they\u2019re represented digitally, \u201cyou don\u2019t have time to invest in new relationships where you are.\u201d<\/p>\n