Self-Monitoring and Self-Disclosure Flexibility: A Research Note

This study investigated the effects of person specific and contextual factors on college students’ tendency to vary self‐disclosures in different situations. Subjects classified as high on Snyder\u27s self‐monitoring scale were predicted to be more flexible in their disclosures. It was also thought that males and females may differ inflexibility, and that students may vary their disclosures differently to groups than to dyads and to strangers than to friends. Using Chelune\u27s self‐disclosure situation survey, this study examined self‐reported disclosure. Results indicated that students who were high in self‐monitoring varied their disclosures more than students who were low in self‐monitoring. However, males and females did not differ. Disclosures to strangers were more varied than disclosures to friends. The implications of these findings for interpersonal communication research were discussed