| Abstract: | Information exchange in initial interactions was examined across varying expectations for future contact with the conversational partner. Thirteen dimensions of information were employed to track conversational content over time, tap individuals’ desires, and obtain overall impressions of the information exchanged. The anticipation of future interaction had minimal effects on the actuality of and desire for information exchange, with its strongest effects concerning perceptual variables of conuersational coordination. The importance of anticipation of future interaction to uncertainty reduction theory was found to be misplaced and the theory itself was brought into question by the findings. The importance of the construct of anticipation of future interaction was questioned in terms of the relationship of its operationalization to its conceptualization. |
