Andrew C. High

Technology, relationships, and well-being represent three influential parts of our daily lives. They also represent a common area of research for scholars in a variety of disciplines. Here, we offer guidance for researchers interested in studying the connections among these issues and introduce the special issue in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships focused on the confluence of these topics. We take each issue in turn, along with their interconnections, and describe some common pitfalls along with ideas to advance research in these areas. After analyzing the body of research on technology, relationships, and well-being, we present the special issue. We explain how our analysis of this body of research along with obstacles we encountered conducting research in this area shaped our approach to the issue. For the edification of future editors, we briefly reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of our atypical editorial process before presenting the articles that compose this issue.

Supportive communication can benefit people coping with the stigma that often accompanies mental or emotional distress; however, people might be reluctant to seek support effectively, if at all, for these types of stressors. Guided by the paradox of support seeking, this study expands understanding of how and why people seek support by examining multiple dimensions of stigma, exploring factors that hinder or facilitate people’s decision to seek support, and investigating nuanced support seeking behaviors in the context of mental or emotional distress. Results ( N = 406) revealed that internalization and visibility of stigma differentially impacted strategies people chose to seek support. Whereas visibility corresponded with direct seeking and more emotional content, internalized stigma was associated with avoidance. Perceived costs served as barriers to seeking support, and efficacy buffered against the negative consequences of stigma by encouraging direct seeking and allowing for greater depth and emotional content when seeking support.