Thematic Code Three – Relationship Status

The relationship status theme refers to the relationship status that an individual has with another. The type of relationship they have and the factors that influence the relationship are covered by this theme and determine both if the relationship exists, the strength of the relationship and the way that interaction occurs.

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Thematic Coding Sub Codes

Relationship Status

Strength of Social Ties Generational Differences Tiers of Relationship Desired Type of Interaction Social Experience

Table 4.5 Relationship Status - Sub Codes

Strength of Social Ties: refers to the strength of the social ties or relationship that exists between two people who want to be or are interacting. It identifies that the social relationships that exist between two people vary with some connections being strong while others being less so. This theme was strong amongst all six of the interviewees who specifically identified aspects relating having social relationships of different types with the other Foundation Studies Program students.

From Interviewee D. I was very very close with *name*, I was very very close with *name*,*name*, but then also… because I do not know who is low and who is high I was close to *name*; *name* is one of my best friends here in Australia. Even if he is in Launnie, but we meet at least once a month or twice a month. From Interviewee B. Um…. In *name*case it was kind of personal because she had something against me, she did not like the way I do things. She did not like my voice. And yeah, I do not really know why she did not like me but if someone is going to dislike me why should I make an effort to like them back? And *name*is…… oh god! You knowwwww. Always asking questions um… pissing everyone in class off, disrupting class, pissing our lecturers off, just basically pulling the entire class to a halt. Really, just like stopping everyone else from learning useful stuff.

Connections can have differing levels of strength, how interactions occur, when interactions occur and how the social connection changes over time can all be influenced by this. Interviewee D and Interviewee B offer examples of these differing strengths of relationships with Interview D example focusing on the positive relationships and Interviewee B the negative relationships.

Generational Differences: refers to the differences that exist between members of a similar generation and those of another generation. This was a broadly identified theme in four of the interviewees, interviewee A, B, E and F. These differences can play an impact on how interaction occurs and the level of comfort in using a particular method.

Page | 130 From Interviewee B. My parents do not use Facebook, thank god! (said in slightly quiet voice) I text them all the time, every other day and they call me every week, so whenever my sister is home with my parents we Skype.

From Interviewee E. I work with them, live in the same house as them; they all also have Facebook except my little brother and dad because they do not know how to use technology and my little brother is too young to have it anyway.

The issues with family members (particularly parents) using Facebook as being an unwanted type of interaction is interesting as the medium allows sharing to all, but the desire to share that same information with parents is not the same. Interviewees B and E give examples of how different generations of family approach the use of different types of technical methods of interaction.

Tiers of Relationship: refers to the different types of relationships that the interviewees have with the people around them. Again, this was a broader identified theme among all six of the interviewees. The relationships and expectations are different and the level of interaction desired differs.

From Interviewee B. (In relation to a question about their parents’ possible usage of Facebook) You have no idea! I mean I would definitely feel very um… I’d feel like my privacy has been somewhat intruded you know because they can just use it to check up on me and you know that I can adjust my privacy settings on Facebook sure but the fact that they are still there and they can Facebook stalk me whenever they want. So it would be a bit worrying.

From Interviewee C. (In relation to keeping in contact with someone) It’s not really a distance thing. I mean, I see him coming online every day.. I bet he sees me coming online every day… But…..

It was clear that the types of relationships differ and the tiers indicate how interaction occurs and what type of interaction and sharing is undertaken between different people in the same social space. Interviewee B identifies the differences of a family based relationship and the associated expectations while an excerpt from interviewee C relates to a relationship between the interviewee and another of the Foundation Studies Program participants.

Desired Type of Interaction: refers to how an individual wants to interact with another individual. All six of the interviewees expressed a desire to interact with others in a range of ways. The mode and form of interaction depends on the nature of the relationship and the developed norm with how interaction with another person or group has developed,

Page | 131 From Interviewee D. Maybe Skype but I think Facebook is easier, Facebook is.. email is like a more formal way to contact, Facebook is just like ‘oh! - friends, friends, friends; we are friends’.

From Interviewee B. Um….. I guess you would go out and eat sometimes and like…… actually we did not do much extracurricular activities, um… it was mostly just talking together on Skype… because we all sticked together anyone and the one’s who are were really close, we all stick together anyway so… I think the extent of the stuff we did was going to the Royal Hobart Show, going to K-Mart, going to Coles on our weekly shopping trip….

From Interviewee D. I think I found that email is much easier to express myself because when I go and went to see them, even if I am prepared, I have to just memorise all my talk when I go to see them otherwise I wouldn’t know what to say, I wouldn’t be confident because I do not really know them very well. So if I do not really know the person very well then I will just be not confident, I wouldn’t know what to talk, I wouldn’t know what to say. So I would just send an email to them. The desired type of interaction is determined by each individual as an in-depth face-to- face interaction may not be what is wanted or desired. Interviewee D expressed how a range of different methods of interaction are used depending on how they wish to interact with others, from Facebook to Skype to email. Interviewee B is an example of the face-to-face interactions that were desired and undertaken.

Social Experience: refers to the positive, neutral or negative experiences that an individual has in a particular social situation. In this research it was the social experience that the interviewees had while studying in the Foundation Studies Program. Having a positive experience while completing the course is to some extent related to the social interactions and the social relationships that were formed. Five of the interviewees strongly indicated that they had a positive social experience while studying in the Foundation Studies Program.

From Interviewee B. …In terms of the closeness with friends, I mean you go through the same things; while at Uni you… there will be some people that you meet that will share only one unit with you or two units. You rarely meet people who take all the same units as you do.

From Interviewee F. Ah, seriously yeah! Studying in Foundation is fun actually. You do not take it as seriously as University; at the same time you can enjoy and you can go with friends and meet but in university it is something else.

The positive social experience / positive social environment will promote the development of social relationships. The examples from Interviewee B identify the common experience that all the Foundation Studies Program participants went through

Page | 132 while studying together. Interviewee F provides an example of a common theme relating to the positive social experience that they had while studying.