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ABSTRACT
Prior research (Blackhart et al., 2014) found that rejection-sensitive individuals are more likely to use online dating sites. The purpose of the current research was to explain the relationship between rejection sensitivity and online dating site usage. Study 1 examined whether true self mediated the relation between rejection sensitivity and online dating. Study 2 sought to replicate the findings of Study 1 and to examine whether self-disclosure moderated the relationship between true self and online dating in the mediation model. Results replicated those found by Blackhart et al. and also found that true self mediated the relationship between rejection sensitivity and online dating site usage. These findings suggest that rejection-sensitive individuals feel they can more easily represent their “true” selves in online environments, such as online dating sites, which partially explains why they are more likely to engage in online dating.
Data availability statement
The data described in this article are openly available in the Open Science Framework at https://osf.io/6a34q/
Open Scholarship
This article has earned the Center for Open science badges for Open Materials through Open Practices Disclosure. The materials are openly accessible at https://osf.io/6a34q/
Notes
1. Materials used in the current research and data for both studies can be accessed at https://osf.io/6a34q/.
2. We would like to thank an anonymous reviewer for this suggestion. When all four items of the Real Me Scale were used to calculate a true self score, α = .44. Results were nearly identical, however, when analyses were conducted using the two-item and the four-item true self score.