By Larry D. Witzel
Unpublished manuscript (December 10, 2023)
School of Communication and the Arts, Liberty University
Abstract
Uncertainty reduction theory (URT) offers a foundational purpose for church websites: to reduce the uncertainty of potential guests prior to their visiting a church for the first time. URT was originally applied to interpersonal social encounters, making it particularly appropriate to this context, because church is fundamentally a social experience. The purpose of this mixed-method study is to determine the frequency and type of extractive information seeking related to attending a church for the first time, using a convergent design. This study looked at the extractive information seeking behavior of a sample of adult Americans who attended a church’s worship service for the first time in the last 5 years. The research found that about 2/3 of the respondents showed extractive information seeking behavior prior to visiting a church for the first time by researching the church’s website or social media presence. Over half of those demonstrating extractive information seeking behavior decided not to attend a particular church because of what they found or did not find online. The study identified five categories of information sought by first-time church guests: spaciotemporal, culture, doctrine, activities, and other. This research contributes to scholarly understanding of URT by measuring the actual uncertainty reducing, extractive information seeking behavior of individuals prior to attending a church worship service for the first time.
Keywords: uncertainty reduction theory, extractive information seeking behavior, church websites, mixed methods research
Citation
Witzel, L. D. (2023, December 10). Use of church websites and social media by guests to reduce uncertainty: A mixed-methods study [Unpublished manuscript]. School of Communication and the Arts, Liberty University.