Virtual attraction: What rocks your boat

Flirting online is not the same as flirting face-to-face. The beauty of the virtual medium is that flirting is based on words, charm, and seduction, n ot physical attraction and cues. The online world gives those people who do not fit a stereotypical model of human beauty a chance to be Don Juans and Carmen Mirandas and have an equal opportunity to be found desirable. For t hose considered beautiful by societal standards, it gives them a chance to be attractive to others for reasons other than their physical qualities (i. e., intellect, charm, interests, etc.). It is possible to account for the r ichness and depth relationships can take on via this seemingly impersonal m edium by applying psychosocial theories of intimate attraction as well as d escribing the qualities of interpersonal interactions that take place onlin e. Components of attraction as based on the theory of the development of fa ce-to-face relationships are explored, and then considered in terms of how these theories hold up under a new application. Examples of stories of peop le who have begun relationships online are used to illustrate. Implications for future research are explored.