Complementary Channel Use and the Role of Social Competence

This study focused on channel complementarity among various interpersonal communication channels (face‐to‐face, telephone, e‐mail, text messaging, and Facebook). We looked at daily channel use among 136 participants and demonstrated complementary channel use among most combinations of channels, excluding face‐to‐face. We also extended channel complementarity theory by examining social competence as a moderator of channel complementarity. Results indicated that telephone and text messaging exhibited complementarity at high but not low levels of social competence, whereas e‐mail and text messaging exhibited complementarity at low but not high levels of social competence. Face‐to‐face communication and Facebook exhibited a displacement relationship at high but not low levels of social competence. Implications for channel complementarity theory and the role of individual characteristics are discussed.