COMPUTER-MEDIATED COMMUNICATIONS USAGE AND ROMANTIC 
RELATIONSHIP-SATISFACTION AMONG UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AT 
UNIVERSITIES IN MOMBASA COUNTY, KENYA 

 

 

 

MERCY KAVULI MUTHUI, B. ED 

C50/MSA/PT/24241/2014 

 

 

 

 

“A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF LAW, ART AND 

SOCIAL SCIENCES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR 
THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS (COUNSELLING 
PSYCHOLOGY) OF KENYATTA UNIVERSITY” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

APRIL, 2023 


DECLARATION 




DEDICATION 

This work is dedicated to my family and friends for their guidance, support and 
encouragement throughout the course of this study. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

I wish to acknowledge the invaluable assistance that I got from my supervisor Dr. Phelista 
Musili throughout the research process. I also appreciate my family and friends for their 
continuous support and contribution towards the success of this project. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

hi 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 

DECLARATION ........................................................................................................................... ii 
DEDICATION .............................................................................................................................. iii 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................... iv 
TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................. v 
LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................................... viii 
LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... ix 
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ..................................................................................... x 
OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF TERMS ......................................................................... xi 
ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................ xii 
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 1 
1.1 Background to the study ........................................................................................................ 1 
1.2 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................................... 7 
1.3 Purpose of the Study .............................................................................................................. 9 
1.4 Objectives of the Study ......................................................................................................... 9 
1.5 Research Hypotheses .......................................................................................................... 10 
1.6 Research Questions ............................................................................................................. 10 
1.7 Justification and significance of the study ........................................................................... 10 
1.8 Scope and limitations of the study ....................................................................................... 12 
1.9 Assumptions of the Study .................................................................................................... 13 
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................... 14 
2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 14 
2.2 Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................................... 14 
2.2.1 Psychosocial Theory ..................................................................................................... 14 
2.2.2 Social Exchange Theory ............................................................................................... 17 
2.3 Review of Related Studies ................................................................................................... 19 
2.3.1 Relationship between CMC usage and Intimacy levels ................................................ 19 
2.3.2 Relationship between CMC usage and Emotional Security ......................................... 23 
2.3.3 Relationship between CMC usage and trust levels ...................................................... 25 
2.3.4 Possible strategies for responsible use of CMCs among students ................................ 28 
2.4 Summary of Literature Review and Research Gaps ............................................................ 31 
2.5 Conceptual Framework ....................................................................................................... 33 
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ......................................................... 35 
3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 35 
3.2 Research Design .................................................................................................................. 35 
3.3 Variables of the study .......................................................................................................... 35 
3.4 Site of the Study .................................................................................................................. 36 
3.5 Target Population ................................................................................................................ 36 
3.6 Sampling Techniques and Sample size ............................................................................... 38 
3.7 Research Instruments ........................................................................................................... 40 
3.8 Reliability and Validity ....................................................................................................... 41 
3.8.1 Reliability ...................................................................................................................... 41 
3.8.2 Validity ......................................................................................................................... 41 
3.9 Pilot Study ........................................................................................................................... 42 
3.10 Data Collection Procedures ............................................................................................... 43 
3.11 Data Analysis and Presentation ......................................................................................... 43 
3.12 Data Management and Ethical Considerations .................................................................. 44 
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS, PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION ............... 45 
4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 45 
4.2 Response rate ....................................................................................................................... 46 
4.3 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents ..................................................................... 46 
4.3.1 Distribution of Gender .................................................................................................. 46 
4.3.2 Distribution of Age ....................................................................................................... 48 
4.3.3 Distribution of Religion ................................................................................................ 49 
4.3.4 Distribution of Relationship Status ............................................................................... 50 
4.3.5 Distribution of length of Romantic Relationship .......................................................... 51 
4.3.6 Distribution of individuals who lived with a partner .................................................... 53 
4.3.7 Length of living with a partner ..................................................................................... 54 
4.3.8 The CMCs used by Individuals to Communicate with a Partner.................................. 55 
4.3.9 The CMC Devices accessed by the Respondents ......................................................... 56 
4.4 Findings on the Study Objectives ........................................................................................ 57 
4.4.1 The relationship between CMC usage and Intimacy Levels ........................................ 58 
4.4.2 The relationship between CMC Usage and Emotional Security .................................. 60 
4.4.3 The relationship between CMC Usage and Trust Levels ............................................. 62 
4.4.4 Possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC usage among 
undergraduate students in romantic relationship. ......................................................... 64 
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............ 71 
5.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 71 
5.2 Summary of the findings ..................................................................................................... 71 
5.3 Conclusions of the Study ..................................................................................................... 73 
5.4 Recommendations of the Study ........................................................................................... 76 
5.4.1 Recommendations for Policy ........................................................................................ 76 
5.4.2 Recommendation for Further Research ........................................................................ 77 
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 78 
APPENDICES ............................................................................................................................. 85 
Appendix 1: Informed Consent Form ........................................................................................ 85 
Appendix 2: Questionnaire for the Students ............................................................................. 86 
Appendix 3: Interview Guide .................................................................................................... 94 
Appendix 4: NACOSTI Permit ................................................................................................. 95 
Appendix 5: University Letter ................................................................................................... 96 



LIST OF TABLES 

Table 3. 1: Distribution of Target Population ............................................................................... 37 
Table 3. 2: Distribution of Gender ................................................................................................ 38 
Table 3. 3: Distribution of the Sample Size .................................................................................. 40 
Table 4. 1: Distribution of Relationship Status ............................................................................. 50 
Table 4. 2 : Pearson Correlation between CMC Usage and Intimacy Levels ............................... 58 
Table 4. 3: Pearson Correlation between CMC usage and Emotional Security and ..................... 61 
Table 4. 4: Pearson Correlation between CMC usage and trust Levels ........................................ 63 



LIST OF FIGURES 

Figure 2. 1: Conceptual Framework.............................................................................................. 33 
Figure 4. 1: Distribution of Gender ............................................................................................... 47 
Figure 4. 2: Distribution of Age .................................................................................................... 48 
Figure 4. 3: Distribution of Religion ............................................................................................. 50 
Figure 4. 4 : Distribution of Length of Romantic Relationship .................................................... 52 
Figure 4. 5: Distribution of individuals living with a partner ....................................................... 53 
Figure 4. 6: Length of living with a partner .................................................................................. 54 
Figure 4. 7: CMCs used by individuals to communicate with a partner ....................................... 55 

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 

CAK: Communications Authority of Kenya 

CMC: Computer-Mediated Communication 

CUE: Commission for University Education 

IMO: International Maritime Organization 

SD: Standard Deviation 

SIMElab: Social Media Lab 

SMS: Short Message Service 

SPSS: Statistical Package for Social Sciences 

UNFPA: United Nations Population Fund 

VIF: Variance Inflation Factor 

UN-Habitat: United Nations Human Settlements Programme 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF TERMS 

Computer Mediated Communications: The different forms of communication through 
networked computers which can involve one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-many 
exchanges of text, audio and video messages such as Cellular Services, Facebook, Skype and 
WhatsApp. 

Couple: Two people in a romantic or sexual relationship. 

Emotional security: The measure of individual.s stability of their emotional state and the 
ability of the person to manage external forces that threaten their calmness. 

Intimacy: The feeling of closeness and connectedness emotionally to another person. 

Relationship satisfaction: Interpersonal assessment of emotional aggressiveness towards 
partners and attraction to relationships. Relationship satisfaction is examined in the context 
of four parameters; intimacy, trust, emotional security and communication. 

Romantic relationship: Two individuals who recognize a connection or attraction 
(including but not limited to sexual attraction) and have voluntarily accepted to be involved 
in a relationship. 

Trust level: The degree of reliance, confidence and worth one feels towards another person. 
the End. 


ABSTRACT 

Technology advances have turned the world into a global village. This has been made 
possible through the use of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC), which has become 
a preferred mode of communication by most people across the world and in Kenya too. 
Young adults, being the highest users of CMCs, its essential to understand how they use this 
technology and its impact on different aspects of life. At this stage too, young adults are 
characterized by the creation and maintenance of diverse relationships. However, there is 
little literature that tried to explore the experience of young adults with CMC and how it 
influences their satisfaction in romantic relationships. Hence, this study sought to establish 
the relationship between computer-mediated communications and romantic relationship 
satisfaction among undergraduate students in Mombasa County, Kenya. The study objectives 
were: to establish the relationship between CMC usage and intimacy in undergraduate 
students. romantic relationships; to investigate the relationship between CMC usage and 
emotional security in undergraduate students. romantic relationships; to determine the 
relationship between CMC usage and trust levels in undergraduate students. romantic 
relationships; lastly to find out possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC 
usage in romantic relationship among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County. Erik Erikson.s Psychosocial Theory and Social Exchange Theory developed by 
George Homans guided the study. The target population was 9,883 undergraduate students 
drawn from one public university and one private university. Quota sampling was used to 
select participants for the study. A sample size of 370 participants was obtained using a 
formula recommended by Mugenda & Mugenda (1999). Romantic relationship satisfaction 
was assessed using a Couples Satisfaction Index (CSI-32) adapted from Funk & Rogge 
(2007). Questionnaires were administered to the students and 6 key informants were 
identified who took part in semi-structured interviews, they included; student leaders, dean of 
students, senior lecturers and counsellors from each university. A pilot study was done on 29 
final year students from Kenyatta University, Mombasa campus. Validity was ensured 
through the review of empirical and theoretical literature, and the research instrument by the 
supervisor the reliability of the instruments was computed and a Cronbach.s coefficient of 
0.75 was found. Quantitative data was processed and analyzed using SPSS version 21 and 
Advanced Excel, while qualitative data which included the excerpts and quotes from the 
interviews was analysed by content analysis. The data was subjected to descriptive analysis 
using percentages, frequencies and mean scores, while inferential statistical analysis using 
Pearson's Correlation Coefficient (r). Results were presented using tables and figures. Results 
revealed that there was a statistically significant positive correlation between computer-
mediated communication usage and intimacy levels, r (350) = 0.554, P=0.004<0.05, and the 
mean value was 4.3120 (SD = .37975); the CMC usage and emotional security, r (350) = 
0.784, P=0.008<0.05 with a mean value of 4.1265 (SD= .37970); CMC usage and trust 
levels among the undergraduate students, r (350) = 0.777, P=0.007<0.05 and the mean value 
was 4.1588 (SD= .53620). The study concluded that there existed a significant relationship 
between CMC usage and romantic relationship satisfaction. The study recommended 
possible strategies that would promote the healthy use of CMC usage among students and 
society at large. Lastly, further studies on other factors that relate to CMC usage, the 
dimensions of engagement against computer-mediated devices and a comparative study to be 
done in other counties were recommended. 


CHAPTER ONE 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1 Background to the study 

Technology, being part of the human race, keeps evolving to serve human needs as they arise. 
One of these needs is communication and through technology.s evolution of electronic 
communication channels, the world has become a global village. Most states across the globe 
have embraced these interconnections and each day more people are using computers, phones, 
tablets, pads through cellular, satellite and internet channels, as channels of communication 
(Lee, 2015; Tamayo & Gertrudix, 2017). 

 

The advances in communication technologies has resulted to computer-mediated 
communication. Pirak, Sangsuwan and Buayairaksa (2014) defined computer-mediated 
communication (CMC) as “an umbrella term that encompasses various forms of human 
communication through networked computers, which can be synchronous or asynchronous 
and involve one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-many exchanges of text, audio, and/or 
video messages”. Additionally, Spitzberg (2017) states that CMC is any human 
communication that occurs through the use of two or more electronic devices. Over time, the 
term has broadened to cover not only communications that occur via computer-mediated 
formats but also all forms of text-based interactions. These communications channels include 
messaging (Short Message Service [SMS] and instant messaging), posts (texts and pictures) 
and video calls. All these three categories are accessed through Cellular Services, Facebook, 
Skype, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Viber, International Maritime Organization (IMO), Twitter, and 
Instagram among others (Smith & Anderson, 2018). Moreover, technology has had a 
significant role in communication between young adults in romantic relationships. Morey, 


Gentzler, Creasy, Oberhauser, & Westerman (2013) note that technology fosters intimacy; “a 
potential core element of romantic relationships, and key goal of the attachment system” 
(Ploquin, Brassard, Lafontaine & shaver, 2014; Klein, 2013; Kohut et al., 2012). 

 

As adolescents transit to universities and colleges they change from dependency to autonomy 
where they form new bonds with romantic partners and let go those shared with primary care 
givers (Stavrianopoulos, 2015). These findings were echoed by Favotto and Davison (2017) 
who argued that young adults are the highest users of the computer-mediated communication 
since they are in the age group characterized by the creation and maintainance of diverse 
relationships. According to Favotto and Davison (2017), CMCs provide a channel for easy 
communication in relationships because they are not only tools but a medium for social 
relations. 

 

Relationship satisfaction is an interpersonal assessment of positive feeling towards one.s 
partner and attraction to the relationship (De Andrade, Wachelke, & Howat-Rodrigues, 2015). 
This simply means that it is the subjective and overall evaluation of one.s own relationship 
and determines whether the relationship will grow or end. Feelings of emotional security, 
intimacy, trust and successful communication are the major indicators of romantic 
relationship satisfaction (De Andrade, Wachelke, & Howat-Rodrigues, 2015). 

 

Romantic relationship satisfaction is based on the individual.s judgment about the positivity 
of his/her relationship. This judgement is based on aspects such as love, communication, 
intimacy and commitment and it is judged or rated through the presence, absence and 


intensity of these aspects. High levels of relationship satisfaction are characterized by high 
degrees of intimacy, emotional security, trust and communication which leads to the 
individual being generally satisfied with life. On the other hand, low level of relationship 
satisfaction leads to unhealthy romantic relationships and has been associated with increased 
psychological distress over time (Whisman, Whitton & Rhoades, 2014). 

 

A study done by Stavrianopoulos (2015) at a large four-year public college on the East Coast 
of the United States found that dating among college students was associated with positive 
developmental outcomes, including favorable effects on academic performance. Similar 
findings were revealed in a study conducted at Korean universities (Lee & Chang, 2021) 
where they were investigating the factors that influence romantic relationship satisfaction of 
university students. Both studies showed that satisfying romantic relationships were important 
in university dating and that “healthy young adult dating builds self-sufficiency and self-
esteem, practices conflict management and provides opportunities to negotiate trust and 
provides lessons on how to build, maintain, and end relationships” (Stavrianopoulos, 2015; 
Lee & Chang, 2021). 

 

Shields-Nordness (2015) in the study of social media, relationships and young adults 
researched the adverse effects of social media usage on young adults from different states in 
the US. The study lists anxiety (social), feeling isolated and the pressure to alter their 
personalities, to impress an audience, as some of the downsides of social media. Additionally, 
Lenhart and Duggan (2014) in the study of couples, the internet and social media, found that 
social platforms have been a source of quarrels and hurtful experiences through tensions, 


frustrations, distractions, romantic jealousy and surveillance, even though it offers new means 
of intimacy. Both studies demonstrate the role social media plays in the initiation and 
development of relationship satisfaction among different young adults but do not cover the 
relationship CMC usage plays in young adults. romantic relationship satisfaction. This creates 
the need to study the relationship between CMCs and romantic relationship satisfaction 
among undergraduate students. 

 

A study by Runcan (2015) on the effects of computer-mediated communication on young 
people from the Timis County in Romania showed that most young people were heavy users 
of social networks to support and build upon existing social relations and not as much on 
forming new ones. The study noted that communication had evolved at an unprecedented 
pace, the strengths and weaknesses of the latest platforms were becoming complex and 
challenging to assess. David and Katz (2016) established that healthy relationships were 
associated with better mental and physical health. These findings argued that there was a 
likelihood that the levels of CMC usage among young adults was related to romantic 
relationships. 

 

In Sub-Saharan Africa, most countries have adopted digital technologies to build economies 
which promote efficient service delivery and development (Carmela and Brunetta, 2020). 
According to Galadanci and Abdullahi (2018) most developing countries have recorded 
improved communication systems as these technologies allow people to connect within the 
continent at affordable price. Use of internet technology has resulted in strong relationships 
with business partners and clients (Aniemeka, 2013). A recent data released by Global System 


for Mobile Communication (GSMA, 2019), indicated that in Africa, there were about 456 
million mobile subscribers. The report revealed that 23% of the population were regular 
mobile internet users, where by the leading country was South Africa with 91%, Ghana came 
second with 80%, and third was Senegal which was rated at 79% (Taylor & Silver, 2019). 
Further, Donga & Zindiye (2018) assessed adopting digital marketing and use of mobile 
phones among university students of South Africa. The study showed that majority of the 
students were addicted to using mobile phones and they were not necessarily doing mobile 
marketing but mostly connecting with friends. Similarly, another study that involved young 
people in the South West Nigeria, Ayandele & Busari (2019) established that smartphone 
addiction, anxiety and depression were strongly correlated and were highly prevalent. 

 

The usage of CMCs in Kenya has grown over the years with more of the citizens accessing 
and using phones as the basic electronic channel of communication through both cellular and 
internet channels. This is highlighted by data released by the Communications Authority of 
Kenya (CAK) which shows that as of September 2021, the total number of internet 
subscriptions in Kenya was 47.6 million (CAK, 2021). The majority of the subscribers 
accessed internet through their mobile phones. Moreover, a survey conducted by SIMElab in 
2020 showed that the most active age group on social media in Kenya was between the age of 
21-25 majorly using socializing networks like Instagram, Snapchat, and Telegram. Unlike in 
2019, where the most active age was 26-35 who are now more active on the professional 
networks like LinkedIn, Skype and Twitter. Additionally, the data also indicated that 
WhatsApp (89%) and Facebook (81.7%) were the most commonly used platforms in the 
country (SIMElab Africa, 2020). These statistics indicated that Kenyans, especially young 


adults, were using CMCs more as their primary means of communication and interactions, 
hence the need to investigate its impact in romantic relationship satisfaction. 

 

Most studies done in Kenya focusing on university students. usage of CMCs in romantic 
relationships concentrate on one platform or social media, the negative impacts it has on 
relationships, emotional and mental wellbeing and not on romantic relationship satisfaction. 
For example, in a study done among undergraduate university students studying in United 
States International University, Nairobi aimed to investigate how university students use 
social media to maintain romantic relationships. The findings revealed that most individuals 
used social media to track and monitor their partners without their knowledge, they also 
compared their partners and relationships with others. These behaviors led to conflicts in the 
relationships, through feelings of betrayal, mistrust, issues of pressures to conform to peer and 
society relationship standards which ultimately led to termination of the relationships 
(Mwangi, 2016). 

 

Although there is a rapid increase in internet usage among young adults in Kenya, there isn.t 
enough research data to ascertain the relationship between CMC usage and romantic 
relationship satisfaction among young adults. This then makes it essential to explore this 
relationship, studying CMCs through its various platforms as it is rated as the main mode of 
communication among young adults (CAK, 2021). Further, although these studies explore 
relationship satisfaction in depth through breaking down its components (emotional security, 
intimacy, trust and communication), they do not show how these components or even 


relationship satisfaction is influenced by the use of CMCs. Since it is a digital era, it is 
important to take this into consideration hence this study purposed to fill this gap. 

1.2 Statement of the Problem 

In the present times, technology is evolving rapidly to serve the human needs as they arise and 
this includes communication which is very vital in the daily lives of people. Technology has 
therefore resulted to the usage of CMCs as the main mode of communication amongst the 
various populations across the world. A report by the UNHRC (2019) found that the nature of 
internet communication has greatly expanded, computer-mediated communication has 
become an ongoing part of daily life, and the use of CMCs has increased and continues to 
increase. The rate of Internet users in Kenya is the highest between ages 21 and 25 years 
(SIMElab Africa, 2020) since young adults especially those in higher institutions of learning 
use internet the most; CMC usage therefore is inevitable for undergraduate students. In 
addition, many young adults at this stage are in romantic relationships since individuals use 
these relationships to form adult attachments which help them learn their relationship patterns 
enhancing their capacity to build more positive, lasting and secure relationships over time 
(Stavrianopoulos, 2015). 

 

Whereas the advantages of computer-mediated communications are many, it is essential to 
understand its relationship with romantic relationships. Many sociologists, advocates, 
educators, psychologists and policy makers have expressed concerns regarding the existing 
negative impact of computer-mediated communications usage. Some studies have found 
evidence that indicated computer-mediated communications usage may be not so beneficial 
for some individuals especially in married life or romantic relationships. For instance, a study 


by Kili and Mulwo (2022) revealed that the recent increase of extra marital affairs has been 
exacerbated by use of computer-mediated communications among married couples. 
According to recent data released in June, 2022 by the Judiciary (SOJAR, 2022) revealed that 
3,784 divorce cases were already in magistrate courts across the country while around 1,820 
had been filed at the Kadhi courts. Further, Mwangi (2019) and Kutto (2022) found that usage 
of computer-mediated communications had cost many romantic relationships as many felt 
betrayed, mistrust issues increased; 10% of individuals in relationships could hide posts and 
texts from their partners by running secret accounts. In addition, individuals spent more time 
on CMCs and this made their partners jealousy and suspicious. This was clear evidence that 
computer-mediated communications can impact marriage and relationships stability. This is 
can therefore be considered a major challenge of the new technology that can adversely affect 
interpersonal relationships and marriages in the society if appropriate measures are not put in 
place to address the issue. Hence, this study sought to identify the possible strategies for 
responsible use of the CMCs among young adults. 

 

In addition, most studies done have investigated the role of CMC usage on individuals, 
especially the young adults, paying attention to its effects on different aspects of behavior, 
personality, mental health, communication satisfaction among others (Shields-Nordness, 
2015) while very few studies focused on its effects on romantic relationships. Additionally, 
the few studies in Kenya that do focus on romantic relationships explore the topic of 
relationship satisfaction through different dimensions such as the media's effect on romantic 
relationship behavior through telenovela (Mbogori, 2018). Lastly, despite there being a rapid 
increase in internet usage among young adults in Kenya, there isn.t enough research data to 


ascertain the relationship between CMC usage and romantic relationship satisfaction among 
students. Therefore, this study sought to establish whether there was relationship between 
Computer-Mediated Communications usage and romantic relationship satisfaction among 
undergraduate students at universities in Mombasa County. 

 

1.3 Purpose of the Study 

The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between computer-mediated 
communications usage and romantic relationship-satisfaction among undergraduate students 
at universities in Mombasa County, Kenya. 

1.4 Objectives of the Study 

The objectives of this study were as follows: 

1. To establish the relationship between CMC usage and intimacy in undergraduate 
students. romantic relationships in universities in Mombasa County, Kenya. 
2. To investigate the relationship between CMC usage and emotional security in 
undergraduate students. romantic relationships in universities within Mombasa 
County, Kenya. 
3. To determine the relationship between CMC usage and trust levels in undergraduate 
students. romantic relationships in universities in Mombasa County, Kenya. 
4. To find out the possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC usage among 
undergraduate students in romantic relationships in universities within Mombasa 
County, Kenya. 



1.5 Research Hypotheses 

In this study, the following hypotheses were tested: 

1. H01: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and 
intimacy levels amongst dating undergraduate students. 
2. H02: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and 
emotional security amongst dating undergraduate students. 
3. H03: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and trust 
levels amongst dating undergraduate students. 


1.6 Research Questions 

The following research question guided the study: 

1. What are the possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC usage among 
undergraduate students in romantic relationships in universities in Mombasa County, 
Kenya? 


1.7 Justification and significance of the study 

The relationship between CMC usage and romantic relationship satisfaction among 
undergraduate students was the focus of this study. This was informed by the high CMC 
usage levels among young adults in Kenya. While the rise in CMC usage is seen as a 
technological growth by the country (and globally), a broader understanding of the 
relationship between CMC usage and young adults. romantic relationship satisfaction may 
have great practical and theoretical implications on the social, psychological, technological 


and developmental aspects in the society. Given the high level of computer mediated 
communication amongst young adults and the adverse effects of the same, it is essential to 
research into how the usage of CMC influences romantic relationships of its users. 

 

Using the undergraduate students of universities in Mombasa County, the findings from this 
study may benefit University administration and counsellors by highlighting some of the 
challenges students face as a result of overreliance on CMCs. As established in this study, 
that unresponsible use of CMCs adversely affect performance of students. The findings from 
this study may help young adults to avoid overdependence on CMCs and divert that energy 
and time to other contructive activities such as school work and community building 
programmes. 

Romantic relationships play a key role in the lives of young adults through social connection, 
sexual relations and intimacy needs, and this prepares them for successful future long-term 
relationships and marriages. The findings of the current study would enhance their 
understanding of the dynamics of CMC usage which contribute to romantic relationship 
satisfication. It will also help inform university counselors, couple therapists and 
psychologists on the measures and remedial strategies that can be used in supporting young 
adults who are having challenges in their relationships. 

Academically, the study may generate knowledge for further study. The results of the study 
established the challenges that dating undergraduate students face which can be used to guide 
and psycho-educate other students on how to strengthen satisfaction in romantic 
relationships. 


1.8 Scope and limitations of the study 

This study focused on assessment of the relationship between computer-mediated 
communications and relationship satisfaction among dating undergraduate students in 
universities in Mombasa County. The study focused on the relationship between CMC usage 
and intimacy levels, emotional security and trust level among dating undergraduate students 
in these universities. This study.s population was drawn from the three university categories 
outlined in the recent Second County Integrated Development Plan 2018-2022 report 
(February, 2018) by County Government of Mombasa and they included; Chartered 
University, Public and Private Satellite University Campuses. 

In terms of geographical scope, the study was domiciled in universities within Mombasa 
County, which is one of the 47 Counties in Kenya created after the promulgation of the New 
Constitution in August 2010. Mombasa County was selected for this study because it.s 
among the urban cities in the country making it to have the highest internet penetration 
according to CAK (2021) and SIMElab Africa (2020). In addition, Mombasa being the 
second largest city, it has a variety of higher institutions of learning which have the highest 
numbers of CMC users; young adult, 21-25 years (SIMElab Africa, 2020). This made 
university students in Mombasa a good representation of the Kenyan young adult population 
since they represent the different demographics of the country. 

The study targeted all undergraduate students involved in romantic relationships studying in 
these universities. The study was conducted during the months of May and July 2022. Both 
questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data. Descriptive statistics and inferential 
statistics were employed to ensure that the study gained more insights on research under 
inquiry. 


Also, a number of limitations were identified in this study. Firstly, the research was limited to 
young adults who are students of universities in Mombasa County and are or had in the past 
been in romantic relationships. The sample respondents may not therefore give a very 
accurate representation of all the institutions of higher learning. For this reason, the findings 
may not be applicable to all youth within the general public, given the difference in 
demographics. Therefore, the researcher encouraged the participants to be as accurate and 
honest in their responses as possible. Secondly, the study experienced the unresponsive and 
unwilling respondents as they feared for their identity but the researcher assured them of 
confidentiality and anonymity of all of their responses. Lastly, suspicion of the use of 
research findings was expected and, on this case, the researcher explained that the findings 
would be for academic purposes only. 

1.9 Assumptions of the Study 

The study made the following assumptions; 

2. A significant population of undergraduate students in universities within Mombasa 
County have access to and use CMCs. 
3. The undergraduate students in the universities are or had in the past been in romantic 
relationships. 
4. The study participants would be willing to give honest responses. 
5. There would be undergraduate students who use CMCs to communicate in their 
romantic relationships. 


 

 


CHAPTER TWO 

LITERATURE REVIEW 

2.1 Introduction 

This chapter contains the literature review of the study on the relationship between computer 
mediated communication and romantic relationship-satisfaction among undergraduate 
students. It contains the theoretical framework in which the study was based on, a review of 
various sources of literature relevant to the stated objectives, a summary of the literature 
review and the conceptual framework. 

2.2 Theoretical Framework 

There have been various theories formulated with different views on human relationships. 
Therefore, this study was guided by Erik Erikson.s Psychosocial Theory (1950) and Social 
Exchange Theory developed by George Homans (1958). 

2.2.1 Psychosocial Theory 

The study was grounded on the Psychosocial Theory, which postulate that a person.s 
behavior is deeply influenced by society and relations. One of the major proponents of this 
theory is Erik Erikson in 1950. According to him, the word psychosocial „involves the 
intricate intertwinement of the psychological (mind) and the social (relationships).. He 
believed that personality develops in a series of stages, hence, this specific principle 
genetically inescapable in influencing human development (Chapman, 2017). 

The Psychosocial Theory (Erikson 1950, 1963) states that the motivation for human behavior 
is socially driven and is reflected on how individuals associate with others. Different social 


institutions at different stages of an individual.s life have a great impact. According to the 
theory, “personality development happens through a series of crises”. Erikson (1968) 
describes a crisis as “a radical change in [interpersonal] perspective”. Each crisis occurs in a 
predetermined order; however, the duration of each crisis depends on the individual and their 
culture. The theory indicates that when one is able to successfully complete a crisis stage, it 
creates “a healthy personality and the acquisition of basic virtues” and provides the 
individual with the necessary characteristic strengths with which they can resolve subsequent 
crises. On the contrary, when one is unable to complete a stage successfully, “it results in a 
reduced ability to complete further stages and therefore an unhealthier personality and sense 
of self” (Mcleod, 2018). 

As part of the eight-stage developmental process, Erickson avers those individuals who 
successfully attain the sense of identity from the fifth stage marked as “Identity versus 
Identity Confusion” usually then get into the sixth stage which he calls the “Intimacy vs. 
Isolation” life crisis. At this stage the young adults have attained the virtue of fidelity, hence, 
are now able to start sharing themselves more intimately with others. They begin exploring 
external relationships (not with family members) that can lead to longer-term commitments 
(Mcleod, 2018). This then leads them to stand out and form relationships in pursuit of 
intimacy. This is possible because after an individual is aware of their own identity then they 
are able to connect theirs with another to make a relationship. When they are able to 
successfully complete this stage, it results in happy relationships and a sense of commitment, 
safety, and care within a relationship (Mcleod, 2018). These relationships include friendship, 
spouses, sexual partners, colleagues among others. The individuals that did not achieve 


identity are insecure and often end up with low self-esteem leading to the struggles and fear 
of engaging in activities that lead to intimacy consequently leading to isolation. 

Young adults (20-40 years old) fall within the “Intimacy vs. Isolation” life crisis where an 
individual seeks to achieve intimacy by attaining the sense of love so that they can 
successfully move on to the next stage of development. The sense of love is attained when an 
individual is able to create an intimate relationship with another person and be able to not 
feel isolated even when alone. Intimacy then becomes a combination of mutuality, sensitivity 
to a loved partner, physical closeness, willingness to share and openness. 

This study recognizes the central role and the need for young adults to strengthen their 
romantic associations which also is a critical stage in life. In Erikson.s sixth life crisis, 
therefore, young adults go through various aspects and situations to construct and preserve 
relationships and it.s significant for them to achieve a romantic relationship which involves 
mutuality, openness, sensitivity, physical and sexual intimacy, and emotional connection 
with a partner. This kind of romantic relationship often leads to marriage which creates a 
foundation for the next stage, “Generativity versus Stagnation”. Of importance is the shift in 
this generation of the enhancement, or otherwise, of such connection between any two 
individuals through the computer mediated communications, a phenomenon that has created 
both challenges and opportunities - possibly in equal measure. A substantial amount of 
communication between persons in such age brackets, whether it is by use of social media or 
any other modern form of CMC sought to enhance the attainment of each of the eight stages, 
the extent of which was the interest of the current study. 


2.2.2 Social Exchange Theory 

The second guiding theory for this study is the Social Exchange theory developed by George 
Homans (1958). The theory claims that individuals. base relationships formation, 
maintenance and termination on outcomes they perceive from it (Cook et al., 2013). Positive 
outcomes are perceived as rewards or benefits while negative outcomes are regarded as costs. 
When rewards are realized as high and the costs are seen as low, the individual tends to feel 
positive about the romantic relationship hence high feelings of relationship satisfaction. The 
opposite is experienced in the situation where the individual perceives an increase in costs or 
decrease in benefits hence will have feelings of dissatisfaction in the relationship. 

The Social Exchange Theory proposes that “social behavior is as a result of an exchange 
process which is a give and take situation” (Cook et al., 2013). This theory put in context 
then explains that young adults would get into relationships with the belief that the reward 
will out way the loss. The theory goes ahead to analyze how the young adults achieve 
satisfaction through maintaining more rewards (approval) than loss (disapproval) in the 
relationships. CMCs, through the use of platforms like social media sites, texting and face-
timing, have become the main mode of communication (Wilkerson, 2017) and this is because 
CMCs allow young adults to easily share their interests, experiences and interact with each 
other. The continuous use of CMCs in relationships implies that the reward for using them in 
the relationship exceeds the costs hence contributing to the continued usage. The rewards or 
positive outcomes derived from using CMCs are motivations for forming and maintaining 
relationships. 


There are rewards and costs exchange when sharing, commenting, liking, double tapping, 
retweeting posts. The rewards to the one who posts is being able to share events in their 
lives, connect with their partners and get other people commenting or knowing about it. The 
cost would be the time spent to write the posts, take and edit pictures as well as like or 
comment on their partners posts or people commenting on their posts. Hence, reciprocity is 
an important part of using CMCs in a relationship since it builds more rewards than costs. 
Jahan and Kim (2020) in their study, mentioned that “individuals with strong relationship ties 
tend to interact and exchange more information frequently as compared to those in weak 
perceived ties thus individual will apply reciprocity toward the area or source from which 
they received more benefits”. 

Using CMCs to enhance communication between a couple and as a platform to express love, 
passion, intimacy and commitment, the individuals will associate this with positive feelings 
hence a „reward.. Therefore, leading to the effective maintenance of the quality of the 
romantic relationships. This then contributes positively to the accomplishment of the 
“Intimacy vs. Isolation” life crisis since the individual has feelings of attainment of love in 
the relationship. Ineffective communication, on the other hand, is perceived as a high cost 
leading to a negative judgment of the relationship hence a less success in the relationship 
quality leading to the individual being dissatisfied in the relationship. 

The current study will be based on Social Exchange theory to assess the relationship between 
computer-mediated communications usage and relationship satisfaction among 
undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. The theory was applied to assess 
the young adults that strive to attain the virtue of love through gaining intimacy which is 
achieved through relationship satisfaction basing it on romantic love. Emphasis was also paid 


on struggles that the young adults go through in forming and maintaining romantic 
relationships, how they are able to perceive more positive outcomes (rewards) in order for 
them to attain intimacy and love as a virtue, and how CMCs are related to this process. 
Consequently, successfully moving on to the next stage of development. 

2.3 Review of Related Studies 

This section provides a review of relevant literature derived from the studies that have been 
done on the contribution of computer-mediated communication on romantic relationship-
satisfaction among young adults. 

2.3.1 Relationship between CMC usage and Intimacy levels 

Literature shows that young adults that use a high amount of computer-mediated 
communication are likely to achieve higher levels of intimacy which is a component of 
relationship-satisfaction due to the fact that such communication creates a virtual reality that 
enhances certain experiences in more ways than would the traditional face-to-face encounters 
(Ruppel and McEwan, 2022). A study by McGee (2012) explored whether the frequency of 
emerging adult.s CMC usage was related with their perception of intimacy, relationship and 
sexual satisfaction. The sample population included 298 American young adults between the 
ages of 18-29. These young adults were individuals who were in a face-to-face romantic 
relationship and frequently used CMCs to communicate. The study focused on comparing the 
intimacy levels in those that met first online and those who met face to face which was 
considered more intimate. In the end, the findings suggested that those who used CMCs more 


frequently had increased levels of intimacy, however this did not have an influence on their 
romantic relationship satisfaction. 

 

Another study conducted by Sanchez (2017) in United States focused on the function of social 
media (such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Tumblr) in maintaining intimate 
relationships. The study consisted of 410 participants from Amazon Mechanical Turk, who 
were at least 18 years old and were in a romantic relationship. The study used 6 main aspects 
to represent intimacy in a relationship: care, commitment, interdependence, knowledge, 
mutuality, and trust. These 6 aspects made up the question categories that participants had to 
answer concerning social media usage and intimacy in their romantic relationships. The study 
found that individuals who shared their relationship status felt they were more satisfied with 
their relationships. Likewise, those that posted their partner.s updates and pictures with their 
partners had a higher degree of relationship quality. Individuals who had a high degree of 
relationship satisfaction felt they were more intimate with their partners than those who had 
not. The study concluded that the amount of time spent on social media did not correspond 
with intimacy in relationships. Since most participants were female (59.5%), it limited the 
ability to detect the role of gender difference. Also, focusing on time spent on social media to 
measure levels of intimacy was limiting since the length of the relationship was not 
considered as well as the quality and satisfaction of the social media interactions. This study 
did not fully provide adequate findings on whether social media influenced maintenance of 
intimate relationships. Therefore, the current study soughted to fill in this gap by establishing 
the relationship between CMC usage and intimacy levels among students in romantic 
relationships. 


 

Zihad, Chaittee and Rahman (2021) conducted a research on the effects of social media on the 
interpersonal relationships of couples in the neighborhood of Dhaka city in Bangladesh. The 
study used both primary and secondary sources and a descriptive triangulation approach was 
used to analyze the data. The sample size included 200 married couples living in Dhaka city 
and had been using social media platforms. According to the results, 97% of the married 
couple reported that they felt empowered and appreciated when their respective partners 
posted their photos or wrote a post regarding them on the social media while only 3% said it 
didn.t matter to them. These findings implied that individuals felt more intimate with their 
partners when they were open about their relationships and if otherwise, they felt very anxious 
and this affected their intimacy levels in the relationship. Zihad, Chaittee and Rahman (2021) 
also found that 88% of the couple felt jealous when their respective partners were in contact 
with someone of the opposite gender on social media while a small portion, 12% were not 
jealous. Further, majority of the respondents reported that when their friends reacted on the 
couple.s photos, they felt proud and their intimacy in their relationship grew stronger. The 
study concluded that social media usage had a significant effect on interpersonal relationships 
of married couples if not well controlled; therefore, excessive use of social media affected the 
quality of marriage among couples in this region. 

 

Kashaija (2021) conducted a study which focused on the relationship between use of social 
media and family members. relationship in Kinondoni Municipality in Tanzania. The sample 
size was 100 respondents who were selected through simple random sampling and purposive 
sampling techniques. The methods of data collection were; questionnaires, in-depth 


interviews and observation. The findings revealed the relationship between social media and 
family had both positive and negative effects; this implied that social media contributed to 
unrealistic expectations in relationships which made individuals less interactive with their 
family members while on the other hand, social media enhanced level of intimate interactions 
among family members and sharing of information on issues concerning their families. The 
study recommended formulation of government policies that would regulate social media use 
and protect family from conflicts that result from irresponsible use of the media. 

 

In Kenya, a study by Mwangi (2013) investigated the impact of social networking sites on 
interpersonal relationships among teenagers in secondary schools. The study applied a 
descriptive survey design and used questionnaires and focus group discussions to collect data. 
The study selected students in boarding schools in Murang.a East district who had access to 
access to social networking sites while at home. A sample size of 250 respondents aged 
between 13-18 years of age and simple random sampling technique was applied. The study 
indicated that Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and LinkedIn were the most common social 
networking sites used by the teenagers. The study revealed that social networking sites had 
influence on intimate relationships among the teenagers as the respondents argued that they 
enhanced their communication which strengthened their bonding with each other. Further, 
social networking sites enabled them to maintain their relationships as communication was 
undisrupted during holidays. According to Mwangi (2013) use of social networking sites gave 
confidence to the teenagers to express themselves to their friends of opposite sex and this kept 
their friendships strong as long as they desired. 

 


Similar findings were established by Kili and Mulwo (2022) who supported previous studies 
that had shown that excessive use of social network sites not only had a long-lasting effect on 
the psyche of students but also affected the physical, mental, and social aspects of their lives. 
According to Kili and Mulwo (2022) who assessed the dynamics of social relationships 
formation and management in the online platform among university students at seven 
universities in Kenya, argued that communication through computer-mediated communication 
channels strengthened the relationship of the partners as they were able to solve issues despite 
being in dispersed locations. From the above findings, it was evident that social media 
influenced romantic relationships, however, it did not investigate the relationship between 
computer-mediated communications such as WhatsApp, Phone Calls, SMS and other cellular 
services, and intimacy levels, and this is the gap that the current study soughted to fill. 

 

2.3.2 Relationship between CMC usage and Emotional Security 

Previous research has consistently demonstrated that individuals with high levels of intimacy 
report a high levels of romantic relationship satisfaction. Hence, relationship dissatisfaction 
is caused by factors that interfere with the level of intimacy, one being emotional insecurity 
(Favotto and Davidson, 2017). This was also established by Ranney and Troop-Gordon 
(2012) in their investigation on computer-mediated communication with distant friends, a 
case of students. first semester in college. The study involved 242 freshmen who were at 
midsemester and one month later. Ranney and Troop-Gordon (2012) found that computer-
mediated communication with distant friends lowered levels of emotional distress as the 
quality of face-to-face friendship was also low. In addition, face-to-face interactions were 


limited thus computer-mediated communication with distant partners was higher and this 
enhanced emotional security for the parties involved. 

An online survey conducted by Farrugia (2013) on social media use affects long-term 
relationships, concentrating on use of Facebook which consisted of 255 students from The 
Rochester Institute of Technology confirmed that emotional security and CMC used which 
was Facebook were directly related. The results denoted that there was a relationship 
between Facebook usage and emotional security in relationships. The individuals that had a 
high level of Facebook usage had increased surveillance and jealousy tendencies. On the 
other hand, those that had varied levels of Facebook usage had positive correspondence with 
jealousy levels in their relationship leading to high levels of romantic relationship satisfaction 
due to the emotional security status in the relationship. The study was effective in showing a 
relationship between levels of Facebook usage and emotional security but did not take into 
consideration other components that build up to romantic relationship satisfaction. 

A similar study by Lam (2016) was undertaken in Ghana, focusing on purpose and 
challenges of social media usage. The population involved was 150 youth aged 11–19 and 
five adult Internet café attendants from two suburbs of Accra, Ghana. The findings revealed 
that the youth in Ghana used social media for self-identity and relationship development and 
maintenance. Other reasons involved searching for new information and gaining social, 
communication, and technical skills. The young adult did this to maintain a high emotional 
status through making sure they are updated and learn new aspects to develop and maintain 
their relationships. The study only focused on the general idea and purpose surrounding 
CMCs hence leading to the need to have more specific studies on CMC usage, its 
relationship with romantic relationship satisfaction. Additionally, a study done in Nigerian 


universities by Lawal and Okereke (2021) discovered that the length of duration university 
students cohabitated led to a high emotional security in the relationship leading to high 
relationship satisfaction. This was also due to loneliness dimensions decreasing and sex 
satisfaction increasing. 

On the other hand, a study done in a Kenyan college by Mwangi (2016) discovered that 
college students use social media to maintain romantic relationships. Social media platforms 
had become podiums for showing love and affection, marking territories, learning romantic 
relationship norms as well as surveilling partners behavior. An individual.s emotional 
security level in the relationship was determined by the experiences they get using social 
media in their romantic relationship. While it is generally known and agreed that CMCs 
influence the socio-emotional well-being of its users (Jäntti, 2015), there is an existing gap in 
knowledge of the role CMCs play in romantic relationships satisfaction of undergraduate 
students who represents young adults in Kenya. 

 

2.3.3 Relationship between CMC usage and trust levels 

Studies have established that a variety of CMCs contributed immensely to the feelings of 
trust or lack of it among partners in a romantic relationship. A study by Ohadi, Brown & 
Rosenthal (2018) on partner similarity in texting and how it affected relationship satisfaction 
among young adults in America corroborated these findings. The study interviewed 205 
young Americans and findings revealed that the young adults were more satisfied in the 
relationship if their partner and them had symmetrical rhythms of texting (sending messages 
that start conversations at the same interval). The study also revealed that use of CMCs 


through phone texting, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, among others had led to high levels 
of texting which impacted the romantic relationships because of its ability to create social 
presence which was a feeling of closeness, from a far. From the response of the participants, 
texting was an important part of their relationship that if a partner did not reply to the text it 
was understood as a violation of the contract in the relationship and that they probably did 
not text back because they were texting another person. Hence, “when regular 
communication was disrupted, people suspected infidelity, sickness, or a loss of interest in 
the relationship” (Bergdall et al., 2012). This study showed the role CMCs have on trust and 
mistrust levels in couples but did not explore the other areas that encompass relationship 
satisfaction. 

Trub (2016) connected the attachment of an individual to the device of communication in this 
case it was their phones. Results of the study showed that the young adults were attached to 
their phones because of its role in their relationships, hence attachment to the phone was due 
to the people behind usage of the phone. Trub (2016) further explained how the attachment 
theory concept played a role in how the individuals drive their relationships. The attachment 
type created in the relationship leads to development of either satisfaction or dissatisfaction 
in the relationship. Partners who had different texting styles due to personality differences 
tended to develop negative feelings in their relationships, which included mistrust of the 
other partner. This finding was the diametric opposite of what couples who have similar 
texting styles experience. Further, the study revealed that for persons in the identified age 
bracket of 18 – 35 years, CMCs also formed a very important medium for the resolution of 
relationship-related conflict. However, it was important to note that the use of this conflict 


resolution method was dependent on the individual.s conflict style, although a vast majority 
was captured in the study as being indirect conflict style individuals. 

This was supported by a study done in Ethiopia and Uganda that includes 385 university 
students - undergraduate and graduate. The research focused on relation satisfaction, but in 
terms of conflict style choices. It concentrated on establishing the conflict style one would 
choose to resolve misunderstandings in their romantic relationships. Result of the study 
indicated that a majority of the individuals preferred an indirect conflict style when in 
conflict with their romantic partner. Those that had a conversation-oriented relationship 
reported being more satisfied in their romantic relationships. Being young adults, most of 
their conversations included the various CMCs one had access to (Courtney, 2009). 

An investigation done in Kenya by Kutto (2022) on the social relationships formation and 
online platforms among students in Kenyan universities established that social media use in 
romantic relationships contributed to conflicts between the partners. This study used 
questionnaires and indepth-interviews to interview students drawn from 7 universities in 
Uashin Gishu County. It was established that 67% of the respondents used social media to 
monitor their partners since they didn.t trust their partners. For instance, this occurred when a 
person didn.t post their partner.s photos or didn.t comment or like their posts on social 
media, and this consequently made the partner very jealous and affected their trust towards 
their respective partner. 

These findings were echoed by Jahan and Kim (2020) who attempted to analyze online 
community participation behavior and the perceived benefits. The study pointed out that 
when trust issues between a couple or partner either in romantic relationship or married rose, 


instilling it back between the individuals was the nearly impossible. Jahan and Kim (2020) 
recommended that there was need to build some level of transparency to block any room for 
mistrust issues that would kill the relationship. 

Further study by Mwangi (2019) on the influence of social media on the maintenance of 
romantic relationships among students of United States International University, Nairobi, 
also revealed that mistrust issues in romantic relationships were caused by use of social 
media. The study employed descriptive research design and used questionnaires and 
interviews to collect data. The study targeted fourth year undergraduate students in romantic 
relationships aged between 18-25 years. The study findings revealed that most students were 
using social media to track and monitor their partners secretly and through social media, they 
could compare their partners and relationships with those of others. According to the study 
findings such behaviors contributed to high conflicts as many felt betrayed, mistrust issues 
increased and pressures to impress their peers and the society expectations, and this 
consequently terminated the relationships. Findings in the above studies have shown that 
CMC usage and trust levels and this made it essential for the current study to investigate the 
relationship between CMCs and young adults. romantic relationships since they are the age 
group that have the highest rate of CMC usage. 

 

2.3.4 Possible strategies for responsible use of CMCs among students 

Previous and recent scholars have indicated that computer-mediated communications 
(CMCs) have widely gained acceptance in many countries across the world. This is also the 
case in African countries despite the challenges CMCs come with and the perception that it 


depletes or corrodes the traditional cultural practices and beliefs. This can be seen in the 
write up done recently by Carmela and Brunetta (2020) who argued that the media 
technologies and the internet played a very important role in the society as people were 
allowed to interact, play and learn through new media unlike in the traditional media. Thus, 
computer-mediated communication was an important aspect to explore in the current study 
while focusing on a local interaction with electronic communication channels and find out 
the possible strategies that would ensure responsible usage of CMCs among the young adults. 

Studies done on CMC usage among young adults indicated that they were addictive and their 
high usage negatively affected work, academic performance and interpersonal relationships. 
Cline (2013) conducted a study on the influence of computer-mediated communication among 
the undergraduate students at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The study 
collected data using focus group discussions, questionnaires and key informant interviews. 
The findings revealed that majority of the students were addicted to using the internet, such 
that they spent an average of 38 hours per week, thus, most were performing poorly in their 
school work. Further, Wilson and Stock (2021) in their small survey on the benefits and risks 
of social media by young adults revealed that due to high time spend on social media 
platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, twitter and other related channels, family bonding 
was weakened, poor time utilization. The survey also revealed that most young people 
especially the age group of 25-35 years, had fallen in depression and anxiety as they could not 
live without it, their whole lives were entirely depending on social media. It was also 
revealed that social media contributed to cheating in relationships and marriages as majority 
of individuals kept their lives private from their partners and this resulted to conflicts between 
the partners. The study recommended that there was need to have young adults educated on 


responsible use of social media. However, the study did not explore the most appropriate 
strategies that would ensure responsible use of social media. Thus, the current study identified 
possible strategies that would promote responsible use of CMCs among students. 

 

Similarly, most studies in Kenya have discovered that social media played a crucial role in 
influencing political ideologies on young adults. Even though, it is widely known that CMCs 
and social media in general enhances communication amongst young adults and are very 
useful in information dissemination, Mutahi (2017) and Gachau (2016) found that it can also 
be used in spreading misinformation, hate speech and incite people to violence. 

Jäntti (2015) based his study on investigating social media usage in developing countries, 
hence chose Kenya for it is ranked among the top countries with the highest social media 
usage in East Africa. The study explored whether the young adults taking part in the study 
perceived social media as a tool strong enough to impact their lives. The impacts explored 
were wide enough to cover civic life related issues, and development of the individual 
through identity, relationships, education and careers. The findings revealed that social media 
was used by young adults for various activities and reasons. These included entertainment, 
communication, social and informational purposes. Specifically, informational purposes 
involved researching on various matters including relationship aspects, romance related 
issues among others. The receiving and passing of information through the different social 
media platforms maintained a continuous flow of communication for a variety of reasons 
including creating and sustaining relationships. 


2.4 Summary of Literature Review and Research Gaps 

The review process revealed a wide array of studies globally and nationally assessing the 
correlation between CMC usage and romantic relationships. However, very few studies have 
been done on usage of computer-mediated communications (CMCs). Most focus on social 
media, specifically the basic usage and effect of social media by and on young adults, an 
approach that is generalized. Further more, most of the previous studies focused on social 
media while the current study examined all computer mediated communications used by 
young adults in the technological era. 

Additionally, after the identification of the aspects of usage and effects of CMCs in the 
creation and sustaining of relationships among partners in romantic arrangements, there is a 
need to explore them in depth through various studies to generate an understanding of the 
role of social media in young adults. There is further need for studies that expand the scope 
beyond social media to other means of communication through technology since social 
media is not the only channel. In addition, Zihad, Chaittee and Rahman (2021) focused on 
married couples in Dhaka City while the current study focused on undergraduate students in 
romantic relationships in universities. Further, even though communication is the main 
cornerstone for relationship satisfaction, most studies in the past focused on face-to-face 
communication yet CMCs are the main modes of communication for young adults in the 21st 
century. 

Early research largely agreed that communication was an important aspect to a healthy 
romantic relationship and its satisfaction seen through communication, trust, emotional 
security and intimacy was achieved. Although these studies explored relationship satisfaction 
in depth through breaking down its components (emotional security, intimacy, trust and 


communication), they did not show how these components or even relationship satisfaction 
was influenced by the use of CMCs. Being in a digital era, it is important to take this into 
consideration hence this study purposed to fill this gap. 

In Kenya, little had been studied in relation to CMCs and romantic relationships and 
therefore this necessitated the current study. Mwangi (2013) investigated the impact of social 
networking sites on interpersonal relationships among teenagers in secondary schools in 
Kenya while the current study focused on the CMCs and romantic relationships among 
undergraduate students. Kili and Mulwo (2022) assessed the dynamics of social relationships 
formation and management in the online platform among university students at seven 
universities in Kenya while the current study looked at both online and offline platforms used 
by undergraduate students to communicate with their partners. 

Although there studies related to usage of CMC and romantic relationships among young 
adults that have been conducted in Kenya, there was no evidence of such studies having been 
conducted in Mombasa County. Lastly, the above studies agreed that CMCs have widely 
gained acceptance in many countries across the world despite the perception that they 
deplete or corrode the cultural practices and beliefs. Notwithstanding the negative effects 
CMC usage has among young adults as identified by the previous studies, there have been no 
attempts to improve the situation, hence, the current study identified the possible strategies 
that would ensure responsible usage of CMCs among the young adults in the universities and 
society at large. Therefore, this study sought to fill these gaps and add to the available body 
of knowledge on the relationship between computer-mediated communications usage and 
romantic relationship-satisfaction among undergraduate students at universities in Mombasa 
County, Kenya. 


2.5 Conceptual Framework 

Figure 2. 1: Conceptual Framework of the relationship between CMCs usage and 
romantic relationship satisfaction. 
Independent Variable 
CMCs usage 
.WhatsApp 
.SMS 
.Phone Calls 
.Facebook 
.Instagram 
.Twitter 
.Telegram 
Intervening 
Variables 
.Laws and 
Regulation 
.Media 
governing 
Policies 
and 
procedures 
Dependent Variable 
Romantic Relationship Satisfaction 
.Intimacy 
.Trust 
.Emotional Security 


The conceptual framework in Figure 2.1 is a simplification of the proposed relationship 
between the research variables and shows the same diagrammatically or graphically 
(Mugenda & Mugenda, 2013). The researcher.s own judgement on the problem which also 
guided the study is given by the framework and exhibits the correlation of the various 
constructs that the researcher examined. The conceptual framework shows the relationship 
between the use of CMCs as the independent variable and predictor of romantic relationship 
satisfaction among university students. The framework shows the relationship between the 
independent, dependent and intervening variable to be cyclic. According to Figure 2.1, the 
independent variable was CMC usage which was measured by the various computer-
mediated communications commonly used by students and they included; WhatApp, SMS, 


phone calls, facebook, Instagram, twitter and telegram. The dependent variable was romantic 
relationship satisfaction which was formed by intimacy, trust and emotional security, while 
the intervening variables included the laws and regulations, and the media governing policies 
and procedures. As individuals derive satisfaction from using CMCs in their relationships, 
they are inclined to keep using it more, this results in a vicious cycle of CMCs use and 
romantic relationship satisfaction. This then shows that the variables are connected in a 
correlational relationship where the levels of CMC usage relate to the level of satisfaction 
experienced in the relationship. 


CHAPTER THREE 

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 

3.1 Introduction 

This chapter presents methodological steps that were followed to establish the relationship 
between computer-mediated communications and romantic relationship satisfaction among 
undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County, Kenya. It describes research 
design, study variables, site of the study, target population, sampling procedures and sample 
size, validity and reliability, pilot study, procedures of data collection, analysis and 
management, and ethical considerations. 

3.2 Research Design 

A correlational research design was used in this study. According to Creswell (2008), 
correlational research describes and measures the degree of relationship between study 
variables. The rating of a subject on two variables is measured without manipulation to 
assess whether there is a relationship between them. This design was found to be appropriate 
as the study sought to establish the relationship between use of CMCs and romantic 
relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students. 

3.3 Variables of the study 

The study variables included; the use of computer-mediated communications which is the 
independent variable (predictor) on one hand, and romantic relationship satisfaction, which is 
the dependent variable (outcome). In this study, computer-mediated communications usage 
indicators included WhatApp, SMS, phone calls, facebook, Instagram, twitter and telegram. 
Romantic relationship satisfaction on the other hand was measured by high levels of trust, 


emotional security and intimacy between couples. Lastly, the intervening variables included; 
the laws and regulations, and the media governing policies and procedures 

3.4 Site of the Study 

The study was conducted in Mombasa County which is one of the 47 Counties in Kenya. The 
county borders Kilifi County to the North, Indian Ocean to the East and Kwale County to the 
South West. It is the second largest city in the country and this ranks it second after Nairobi 
in terms of economic. According to the KNBS (2019) report of the recent national census, 
the total population of County was 1,208,333, composing of 610,257 males, 598,046 females 
and 30 intersexes. This was an increase of 3.9% from 2009 to 2019, which is 1.3% points 
higher than the national average population growth of 2.6% per year (UNHabitat, 2020). The 
main economic activities in Mombasa are ports and maritime trade and tourism. Mombasa 
County was preferred for this study because being an urban city, it has the highest internet 
penetration according to CAK (2021) and SIMElab Africa (2020). Higher institutions of 
learning have the highest numbers of CMC users among its young adult generations 
(SIMElab Africa, 2020). According to the University Statistics (2020) report, Mombasa 
County has more than 20 higher learning institutions. This made university students in 
Mombasa a good representation of the Kenyan young adult population since they represent 
the diverse demographics of the country. 

3.5 Target Population 

According to the County Government of Mombasa in the Second County Integrated 
Development Plan 2018-2022 report (February, 2018), the county has one chartered 
University (The Technical University of Mombasa, formerly Mombasa Polytechnic) and 7 


satellite university campuses where four are public and three are privately owned. The target 
population was the undergraduate students involved in romantic relationships studying in 
each of the three university categories mentioned in the report above; Chartered University, 
Public and Private Satellite University Campuses. 

The undergraduate students were selected since individuals at this age aim to achieve 
intimate romantic relationships in order to create foundation for the next psychosocial stage 
of development (Erikson 1950, 1963). According to KNBS (2019), the total university 
enrollment for the year 2019/20 in Kenya was 509,473. The accessible population was all 
undergraduate university students who were or had in past been in romantic relationship 
from one public university and one private university, that was Technical University of 
Mombasa and Mount Kenya University, Mombasa campus respectively. The two universities 
selected had a total population of 9,883 undergraduate students, according to the University 
Statistics (Ministry of Education, 2020) and this number made up the target population of the 
study. The table 3.2 indicates the distribution of target population from the two universities. 

Table 3. 1: Distribution of Target Population 

University 

Population 

Percentage (%) 

Technical University of Mombasa 

6,029 

61 

Mount Kenya University 

3,854 

39 

Total 

9883 

100 



 

 

 

 

Source: Ministry of Education (2020) 

 

 

In this study, therefore, there were 5,962 male and 3,921 female students and their respective 
percentages were; 60% and 40%. These confirms the statistical report by Ministry of 
Education (2020) which found that there were 59% male and 41% female students in 
Kenyan universities. 


University 

Gender 

Population 

Percentage (%) 

Technical University of 
Mombasa 

Male 

3,984 

37 

Female 

2,045 

24 

Sub Total 

 

6,029 

61 

Mount Kenya University 

Male 

1,978 

22 

Female 

 1,876 

17 

Sub Total 

 

3,854 

39 

TOTAL 

 

9,883 

100 



Table 3. 2: Distribution of Gender 

Source: Ministry of Education (2020) 

 

3.6 Sampling Techniques and Sample size 

In this study, quota sampling was used to select the sample (participants) for the study. In 
quota sampling, the researcher selected participants based on predetermined characteristics, 
so the entire sample had the same distribution of characteristics as the wider population 
(Taherdoost, 2016). Given that this study was limited to university students in romantic 
relationships, this sampling method was most appropriate as it allowed the researcher to 
select the desired population for the study. 

Technical University of Mombasa and Mount Kenya University, Mombasa Campus formed 
the sample population. Technical University of Mombasa is the largest university in 
Mombasa since it is the only public university main campus (the rest are satellite campuses) 
in the county. Having the largest number of university student population in the county, this 
made the institution a good representation of the general university students in the county. 
Mount Kenya University, Mombasa Campus is the largest private university in the county. It 
was officially opened in 2008 and offers 9 undergraduate programs with both full-time and 
part-time students (Mount Kenya University Mombasa Campus, 2021). 

 


Technical University of Mombasa had 9283 undergraduate students while Mount Kenya 
University, Mombasa Campus had 600 undergraduate students, making the total 9,883 
students. According to Mugenda & Mugenda (1999) when the population is more than 
10,000 indivuduals, 384 of them are recommended as desired sample. Thus, to calculate the 
sample size, the formula recommended by Mugenda & Mugenda (1999) was applied. 

nf = 

 

Therefore, using the above formula the sample size calculated was: 

nf = 

nf = 369 students. 

To fill the space of subjects who refused to participate or dropped out during the survey, the 
sample size was 370. 

 

From this, a sample of 224 and 146 participants were selected from Technical University of 
Mombasa and Mount Kenya University, Mombasa campus respectively, making a total of 
370 participants. The table below indicates the distribution of sample size. 

 

 


University 

Population 

Sample Size 

Percentage (%) 

Technical University of Mombasa 

6,029 

224 

61 

Mount Kenya University 

3,854 

146 

39 

Total 

9,883 

370 

100 



Table 3. 3: Distribution of the Sample Size 

 

3.7 Research Instruments 

This study employed questionnaires to obtain data. The questionnaire contained six 
segments. The first segment focused on collecting general background and personal 
information of the respondents. This helped the researcher determine the gender and 
relationship status of the respondents. The second section of the questionnaire was used to 
measure the CMC usage. It contained questions around the respondents. choices of CMCs, 
how long and often they used the CMCs in their romantic relationship. The third segment 
contained questions addressing the first objective of the study, the relationship between CMC 
usage and intimacy in undergraduate students. romantic relationships. The fourth segment 
comprised of questions addressing the second objective of the study, the relationship between 
CMC usage and emotional security in undergraduate students. romantic relationships. The 
fifth section contained questions addressing the third objective of the study, CMC usage and 
trust levels in undergraduate students. romantic relationships. The sixth segment was a 
“Couple Satisfaction Index (CSI), a 32-item scale that was designed to measure one.s 
satisfaction in a relationship.” (Funk & Rogge2007). According to the Cambridge Dictionary 
(2021), “a couple are two people who are either married or in a romantic or sexual 
relationship”, hence CSI was adapted to measure relationship satisfaction in dating 
undergraduate university students. The “CSI-32 scores ranged from 0 to 161. Higher scores 
indicated higher levels of relationship satisfaction while scores falling below 104.5 suggested 


notable relationship dissatisfaction.” (Funk & Rogge, 2007). In the study, each item was 
measured on a five-point Likert scale (1-strongly disagree to 5-strongly agree). Good 
reliability was achieved (a = 80). 

Identified key informants who took part in a semi-structured interview and they included: 2 
student leaders from each university, 1 dean of students from each university, 2 senior 
lecturers from each university and 1 counselor from each university. This type of interview 
was selected because even though the conversation was guided it also allowed for flexibility 
in terms of probing the participants for additional information. The interview involved 
questions that explored their experience and thoughts on the relationship between CMC 
usage and romantic relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students in the university. 

3.8 Reliability and validity of the study 

3.8.1 Reliability 

To measure the reliability of the instruments, a computation using Statistical Package for the 
Social Sciences (SPSS-version 21) was done to establish Cronbach.s reliability coefficient. A 
reliability coefficient of 0.75 was found and the instrument was considered appropriate. 

3.8.2 Validity 

In this study, content validity was ensured through the review of empirical and theoretical 
literature, Psychosocial Theory and Social Exchange Theory, to understand related concepts 
and construct instrument items based on previous studies. The research instrument for this 
study was reviewed by the supervisor and other experts in research methods. They reviewed 
the questionnaire and provided feedback. The main feedback was that the questionnaire was 
too long, then the researcher shortened it accordingly. This was done by performing a pilot 


study that sampled approximately 10% of the sample siz, which was 37 final year students 
from Kenyatta University, Mombasa campus to determine whether the instrument was 
reliable (Saunders et al., 2007). 

Lastly, to improve the validity and reliability of the instruments, the tool included a sufficient 
number of items to make it easier for the respondents to respond and participate wholly in the 
study. The items also focused on identifying the types of CMCs an individual used, the 
frequency of use and relationship satisfaction personal assessment. In this study, a test and 
retest method were used. 

3.9 Pilot Study 

A pilot study was conducted before the actual data collection was done. According Keller 
(2014), 10% of the sample size is an appropriate number of respondents for a pilot study. 
While he recommends that the respondents used in the pilot study should have similar 
characteristics with those of the actual study; he also postulates that in order to protect the 
integrity of the study, those participating in the pilot should not participate in the main study. 
For this research, the questionnaire was tested on 37 final year students from Kenyatta 
University, Mombasa campus and these participants were not part of the main study. 

The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of the research tool chosen; 
test the practicality of data collection and to enable amendment of the research instruments as 
appropriate so as to achieve the desired results. 


3.10 Data Collection Procedures 

The researcher employed 2 research assistants who helped in the administering of the 
questionnaires. They were taken through the questionnaire, tasked to distribute it, required to 
record details of those issued with the questionnaires for easy collection later and also 
directed any difficulties in responding to the questions to the researcher. Since this research 
was conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic, where social gathering were restrained, 
people were asked to keep social distancing and movements in some counties like Mombasa 
were restricted. This posed a challenge to the researcher therefore, opted to distribute the 
questionnaire online in adherence to the MoH Covid-19 regulations and guidelines. In 
addition, the researcher organized virtual meetings with some Key Informant Interview 
(KIIs) and responses from all respondents regardless of the mode of instrument 
administration, were carefully recorded and taken into account. 

3.11 Data Analysis and Presentation 

Analysis of data consists of examination, categorization and tabulation of collected data to 
help in responding to the primary research questions. For this study, after the appropriate 
coding is done, the data collected was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. 

Descriptive statistics were used to analyse quantitative data. It helped the researcher see the 
patterns emerging from the data as well as find absolute numbers to summarize the individual 
variables. The patterns and trends in the data set were described using frequencies and 
percentages. The measures of spread were used to determine the range, quartiles, variance 
and standard deviation. 


Inferential statistical analysis was used to allow the researcher to assess the relationship 
between variables as well as make generalization about the population from which the 
sample is drawn. The Correlation test was used to determine the extent to which the variables 
relate. The Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) was used for inferential analysis 
and testing the relationship between the dependent and the independent variables while the 
Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 was used to analyze the 
quantitative data. Excerpts and Quotes from the interview were included in the final report 
where necessary and conclusions were then drawn and used to come up with 
recommendations. 

3.12 Data Management and Ethical Considerations 

Due to the sensitivity of the information gathered during the study, the researcher took high 
precautions to ensure the data was secure and protected. All the information shared by the 
participants was strictly used for academic purposes only. All the information and data 
collected was treated with the highest level of confidentiality hence was not be shared with 
any third party. As a protective measure, no participant.s name or identifying information 
appeared or used in the final report. Therefore, an Informed consent was obtained from the 
participants. 

Permission to conduct the study was acquired from the relevant authorities including 
Kenyatta University Ethics Review Committee. An application was made by the researcher 
to the National Commission for Science and Technology (NACOSTI), Kenya which is the 
governmental body concerned with authorizing research, for approval to conduct the study. 
Additionally, an authorization letter was requested from Kenyatta University to conduct the 
field work. 


CHAPTER FOUR 

DATA ANALYSIS, PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION 

4.1 Introduction 

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between computer-mediated 
communications and relationship satisfaction among dating undergraduate students in 
universities in Mombasa County, Kenya. This chapter is divided into three sections. It 
begins with the presentation and discussion of demographic data which included: age, 
gender, religion, relationship status, length of the relationship, the length of individuals 
living with a partner, types of CMCs and CMC devices used. Secondly, the response rate 
was also presented in respect to both questionnaires and interviews conducted by the 
researcher. The findings of the study are then presented and discussed as guided by the 
following study objectives: 

. To establish the relationship between CMC usage and intimacy in undergraduate 
students. romantic relationships. 
. To investigate the relationship between CMC usage and emotional security in 
undergraduate students. romantic relationships. 
. To determine the relationship between CMC usage and trust levels in 
undergraduate students. romantic relationships. 
. To find out the possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC usage 
among undergraduate students in romantic relationship. 


Lastly, the analyzed data was generated and presented using SPSS Version 21 and 
advanced excel. The chapter ends with a summary of the findings. 


4.2 Response rate 

The initial sample consisted of 370 participants. However, only 350 questionnaires were 
filled out and returned, while 20 were not received even after follow-up. The completed 
and returned questionnaires yielded a response rate of 95%. According to Mugenda and 
Mugenda (2013), and Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill (2007), “a 50% response rate is 
sufficient, a 60% response rate is good, and a 70% response rate is very good. Therefore, 
a response rate of 95% was appropriate for drawing conclusion of this study. 

 

The study also conducted interviews with a key informant from each university to 
compliment data collected through the questionnaires. The interview guide was used to 
conduct interviews with 6 key informants from each university, including; 2 student 
leaders from each university, 1 dean of students of each university, 2 senior lecturers from 
each university and 1 counselor from each university, to compliment data collected using 
the questionnaires. 

4.3 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents 

Data on the various demographic variables of the respondents was analysed in terms of: 
gender, age, religion, relationship status, length of romantic relationship, and the CMCs 
available and in use by the 350 respondents. 

4.3.1 Distribution of Gender 

The researcher sought to collect data on gender of the respondents because it is a vital 
demographic in the comparison of CMC usage and relationship satisfaction. The 
distribution of this demographic is illustrated in figure 4.1 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4. 1: Distribution of Gender 

 

 

It.s clear from the analysis that male respondents formed the largest portion of the sample 
size as evidenced by 59% while females were 41% of the respondents. The findings 
corroborate the 2019 national census statistics on gender, which show that men (50.5%) 
were more than women (49.5%) in Mombasa County (KNBS, 2019). The results implied 
that both male and female accessed the CMCs. Further, longitudinal studies have 
generated conflicting results on the role that gender plays in relationship satisfaction. 
While, some studies found no significant gender differences in the development of 
relationship satisfaction for example, Lansford (2013). Other studies indicate a more 
negative trajectory for the male gender, for example a study by Lavner & Bradbury 
(2010). Thus, it was important in the current study to consider gender as a moderator and 
examine whether the development of relationship satisfaction differs between women and 
men with the influence of CMC usage. 


4.3.2 Distribution of Age 

Age was examined as a predictor of relationship satisfaction with respect to the duration 
of the romantic relationship. Therefore, it was a vital demographic in the comparison of 
CMC usage and relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students. The study results 
on the age distribution of the respondents are presented in figure 4.2. 

 

Figure 4. 2: Distribution of Age 

 

 

The study findings showed that the majority 84% of the respondents were aged between 
18 and 23 years. The average age of the participants was 21.7 (SD = .65726). This 
analysis therefore revealed that most respondents were young people, who are also found 
in universities and institutions of higher learning in Mombasa. These findings concur with 
the National ICT survey report conducted by the Communications Commission of Kenya 
(CCK) in partnership with Kenya National Bureau Statistics (2020) which established 
that the youths aged between 17-25 years used media more than any other age group. In 
addition, 90% of these youths use phones to communicate with their friends, classmates, 


teachers and families. Similarly, a study by Rauer (2013) investigated developmental 
transitions surrounding romantic relationships among 511 young adults aged between 18 
to 25 years and found that most 80% youths aged between 18 -25 years were in romantic 
relationships. From both studies it can be concluded that young people are the main 
crowd that use CMCs thus in the current study, this was the appropriate group to provide 
adequate information that answered the main study objective which was to establish the 
relationship between computer-mediated communications and romantic relationship 
satisfaction among undergraduate students. 

 

Furthermore, the respondents. age bracket is consistent with the Psychosocial Theory 
exemplified by Erikson (1950 &1963), who argued that the central role and needs of 
persons of the current generation and within the age bracket of 20-40 years is in 
strengthening their romantic associations which also is a critical stage in life. Therefore, 
undergraduate students are best suited for this study due to their age, frequency of using 
computer-mediated communication, and their status as digital natives. 

4.3.3 Distribution of Religion 

Religion as a component of social life (particularly in Mombasa County), is likely to 
contribute to the levels of romantic relationship satisfaction in couples. Therefore, the 
study examined the religious affiliation of the sampled respondents. . The results are 
illustrated on figure 4.3: 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4. 3: Distribution of Religion 

The results established that the majority of respondents were Christians with 51%, 
followed by Muslims represented by 34% and other religions at 15%. These findings 
support the national 2019 census statistics on religion which indicated that Christianity 
(represented by 49%) was the most dominant religion in Kenya (KNBS, 2019). 

4.3.4 Distribution of Relationship Status 

The study further explored the distribution of the relationship status of the participants 
because this demographic is important in the comparison of CMC usage and relationship 
satisfaction among undergraduate students in universities. Table 4.1 depicts the findings. 

Table 4. 1: Distribution of Relationship Status 

 

 

 

 

Study findings depicted that majority 97% of the respondents were in a committed 
romantic relationship while 2% recorded that they were single. Only 1% of the 
participants were married. The research also established that the participants who reported 


to be single were previously involved in romantic relationships that ended as result of 
conflicts associated with CMC usage. This analysis implied that many students were in 
committed romantic relationships. These findings are in agreement with recent research 
by Daina (2021) on dating in universities, a case of undergraduate students in KCA 
University. The research findings revealed that most (77%) students were dating 
alongside their studies and they reported that dating while in campus enabled them to 
handle the good and bad experiences that one would encounter during marriage. 

 

These results also concur with the Social Exchange theory that guided this study, which 
argued that individuals. base relationships formation, maintenance and termination on 
outcomes they perceived from it, either positive or negative. If the outcomes were 
negative, they consequently end such relationships and the vice versa was true (Cook et 
al., 2013). 

 

4.3.5 Distribution of length of Romantic Relationship 

Length of the romantic relationship offers some insight into the role CMC usage has in 
creating and maintaining relationship satisfaction in couples. Thus, the study sought to 
examine the length of the romantic relationship amongst dating undergraduate students in 
universities. The following figure 4.4 below shows the analysis. 


 

Figure 4. 4 : Distribution of Length of Romantic Relationship 

From Figure 4.4, a total of 49% of respondents reported that they had stayed in a romantic 
relationship between 6 and 11 months the least (5%) reported they had been in romantic 
relationship for 3 years and above. The average relationship duration in the sample was 
10.7 months (SD = 1.24621). The results implied that most romantic relationships 
couldn.t last more than 2 years due to possible interruptions caused by CMC usage as 
majority of respondents reported that there was mistrust in their relationships. These 
results corroborate those of Brandon (2016) who evaluated the effect of modern 
technology devices use on young adults in romantic relationships. The results revealed 
that majority (58%) of young adults in Kenya in a committed relationship, had in several 
occasions caught by their partners using mobile phones to send implicit messages that 
stirred up conflicts and negative outcomes which adversely affected relationship 
satisfaction due to trust issues. 


4.3.6 Distribution of individuals who lived with a partner 

To assess the relationship between CMC usage and relationship satisfaction, the 
respondents shared whether they lived with their partners. This data was essential to find 
out whether living with a partner influenced relationship satisfaction of the respondents. 
The figure 4.5 below shows the findings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4. 5: Distribution of individuals who lived with a partner 

As illustrated on Figure 4.5, majority (52%) of the respondents reported that they lived 
with their partners while 48% registered that they were not. These results were consistent 
with those of Haas & Whitton (2015) who found that living together with a partner was a 
sign of long-term commitment, provided emotional support and made the couple a family. 
Therefore, the findings of the latter study supported the reason as to why majority of the 
students in romantic relationship in universities within Mombasa County perhaps had 
already moved in with their partners. 

 

 

 


4.3.7 Length of living with a partner 

Length of living with a partner is a key aspect that is used to measure relationship 
satisfaction and how the former influenced the CMC usage between the two people in 
romantic relationship. Therefore, this study further examined the length/time that the 
partners had lived together. The Figure 4.6 below represents the findings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4. 6: Length of living with a partner 

The results revealed that 28% of the respondents had lived together for a period between 
1 and 1.5 years, 19% recorded that they had indeed lived together for a period between 7 
and 11 months. The minority were 1% said that they had lived together for a period 
between 2 and 2.5 years. Finally, the majority 45% agreed that they had lived together for 
a period of over 3 years. The average time spent living with a partner was 1.9 years (SD = 
.87622) signifying that the respondents who agreed to have lived with their partners for 
the longest had a firm romantic relationship and used CMCs lesser to communicate with 
their partners thus high levels of intimacy, emotional security and trust. These results 


were in line with those of Kardan-Souraki et al., 2018 and Palit, (2013), who emphasized 
the importance of marital duration as a factor promoting intimacy. The researchers found 
that couples who have been married longer had a stronger marital intimacy, and that 
spending more time together gives them a chance to know and learn each other deeper 
thus strengthening the bond between them which in turn increases love, devotion, and the 
ability to sacrifice personal needs when necessary. This was also echoed by Okonowsky 
(2016) who established that individuals who lived together with their partners for the 
longest time had high level of relationship satisfaction. 

4.3.8 The CMCs used by Individuals to Communicate with a Partner 

To obtain adequate findings on the relationship between CMC usage and romantic 
relationship satisfaction, the respondents were asked to indicate the CMCs they used in 
communicating with their partners. Figure 4.7 captures data on the types of CMCs used. 

 

 

 

Figure 4. 7: CMCs used by individuals to communicate with a partner 


The analysis showed that, majority 56% of the respondents recorded that they had used 
WhatsApp while 20% representing registered that they had used phone calls, 19% 
recorded that they had used SMS and the rest representing 5% reported that they used 
other types of CMCs such as twitter, vibe, Facebook Messager, snapchat, emails, 
telegram and skype. This agreed with findings by Leung (2007), who studied the 
relationship between unwillingness to communicate and Short Message Service, i.e. text 
messaging via mobile phones, in 532 students from Socriater College in the United 
States. The researcher reported that young adults preferred text messaging because they 
found it less intrusive than a phone call and quicker than an e-mail. 

 

Similar findings were reported by Reis, Maniaci, Caprariello and Eastwick (2011) who 
conducted a study showing that familiarity actually created attraction in live interactions. 
These scholars found that communication built intimacy and thus led to positive 
relationship outcomes such as satisfaction. As portrayed in this study, it is possible that 
WhatsApp and SMS may have contributed to higher relationship satisfaction among the 
undergraduate students in universities because of its positive association with 
communication satisfaction. 

4.3.9 The CMC Devices accessed by the Respondents 

The study sought to find out which CMC devices were available and accessible to the 
respondents to communicate with their partners because it was helpful in understanding 
of the relationship between CMC usage and romantic relationship satisfaction. The 
following figure 4.8 reveals the findings. 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4.8: CMC devices accessibility 

 

The analysis indicated that majority (84%) of the respondents had access to mobile 
phones, 11% had access to laptops while only 5% had access to tablets. The above results 
implied that mobile phones were the mostly used devices since they are affordable among 
the students. Therefore, these findings agree with those of Yukari (2014) who found that 
mobile phones were praised as a promising means of providing mental measures to young 
adults and adolescents because they were very flexible, interactive and spontaneous in 
nature making it easiest to access information. This was because mobile phones were 
more affordable and unlike laptops and tablets whose access was very rare, and many 
people spent more time on phones than on laptops. 

4.4 Findings on the Study Objectives 

The study generated both quantitative data from questionnaires and qualitative data from 
interviews. Therefore, quantitative and qualitative results are presented and discussed 
simultaneously according to the study objectives. 


4.4.1 The relationship between CMC usage and Intimacy Levels 

The first objective of the study sought to establish the relationship between CMC usage 
and intimacy levels and amongst dating undergraduate students in universities in 
Mombasa County. To obtain this relationship, a null hypothesis was formulated: 

 H01: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and intimacy 
levels among dating undergraduate students. 

To test this hypothesis, the researcher carried out a Pearson Product Moment Correlation 
Coefficient (r). The evidence against the null hypothesis known as the P-value was 
calculated and compared with a significance level of 0.05 and a 2-tailed test was carried 
out to detect both positive and negative effects. Table 4.2 shows the results of the Pearson 
product Moment Correlation Coefficient between CMC usage and intimacy levels, and its 
significance tested at 0.05 level. 

Table 4. 2 

Pearson Correlation between CMC Usage and Intimacy Levels 

 

 

 

From table 4.2, there was a significant positive correlation between CMC usage and 
intimacy levels amongst dating undergraduate students, r (350) = 0.554, P=0.004<0.05. 
The correlation coefficient was found to be 0.554 and the p-value was 0.004 which was 
lower than 0.05 hence there was a significant relationship. This implied that increased 


usage of CMCs correlated with higher levels of intimacy, while decreased usage of CMCs 
correlated with lower levels of intimacy. The mean value was 4.3120 (SD = .37975) 
signifying that indeed there was a relationship between computer-mediated 
communications and intimacy levels amongst undergraduate students in universities 
within Mombasa County. Therefore, based on these results, the null hypothesis indicating 
no significant relationship between CMC usage and levels of intimacy was thus rejected 
and the alternative hypothesis accepted, and concluded that indeed there existed a 
statistically significant relationship between computer-mediated communications (CMC) 
usage and intimacy levels among dating undergraduate students in universities in 
Mombasa County at 5% significance level. 

 

Results regarding the relationship between CMC usage and intimacy levels established a 
positive relationship. This indicated that CMC usage affected levels of intimacy among 
dating students at Mombasa County universities. These findings concured with those of 
McGee (2012) who set out to investigate on whether the increasing frequency use of 
CMCs was correlated with perceptions of intimacy and relationship satisfaction. The 
findings established that those who used high frequency of CMCs had increased levels of 
intimacy which resulted to high relationship satisfaction. This is probably because 
partners feel connected through the CMCs, even when living far away from each other. 
These findings were supported by Jahan and Kim (2020) who investigated on the online 
community participation behavior and perceived benefits from a social exchange theory 
perspective as pointed out by (George Homans,1958) on the young adults strive to attain 
an intimate relationship. Jahan and Kim (2020 argued that individuals with strong 
relationship ties tend to communicate frequently as compared to those in weak perceived 
ties thus individual would apply reciprocity toward the area or source from which they 


received more benefits. This supported the findings of the current study that there is a 
positive relationship between CMC usage and intimacy levels among university students, 
since they were the main crowd that use the CMCs, leading to the effective maintenance 
of the quality romantic relationships. In contrast to these findings, a report by the 
UNHRC (2019) found that the nature of internet communication had greatly expanded, 
computer-mediated communication had become an ongoing part of daily life, and the use 
of CMCs had increased hence resulted to distraction from intimacy, jealousy and mental 
health issues that had ended many relationships and marriages. 

4.4.2 The relationship between CMC Usage and Emotional Security 

The second objective aimed to establish the relationship between CMC usage and 
emotional security among dating undergraduate students within universities in Mombasa. 
To obtain this relationship, the following null hypothesis was formulated: 

H02: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and emotional 
security amongst dating undergraduate students. 

 

To test this hypothesis, the researcher performed a Pearson Product Moment Correlation 
Coefficient (r). Evidence against the null hypothesis is known as the P value, which was 
calculated and compared to a significance level of 0.05. A 2-tailed test was carried out to 
detect both positive and negative effects. Table 4.3 shows the results of the Pearson 
product Moment Correlation Coefficient between CMC usage and levels of emotional 
security, and its significance tested at 0.05 level. 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

Table 4. 3 

Pearson Correlation between CMC usage and Emotional Security 

 

 

 

 

From table 4.3, there was a statistically significant positive correlation between CMC 
usage and emotional security and amongst dating undergraduate students, r (350) = 0.784, 
P=0.008<0.05. The correlation coefficient was found to be 0.784 and the p-value was 
0.008 which was lower than 0.05 hence there was a significant relationship. This implied 
that higher emotional security levels were correlated with increased usage of CMCs, while 
lower levels of emotional security were correlated with decreased usage of CMCs. In 
addition, the mean value was 4.1265 (SD = .37970) signifying that indeed there was a 
relationship between computer-mediated communications and emotional security amongst 
university students in universities within Mombasa County. Based on these findings, the 
null hypothesis stating that there was no significant relationship between levels of 
emotional security and CMC usage was therefore rejected and the alternative accepted. A 
conclusion was made that indeed there existed a statistically significant relationship 
between computer-mediated communication (CMC) usage and emotional security levels 
among dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County at 5% 
significance level. 


 

Results on relationship between CMC usage and emotional security levels revealed a 
strong positive relationship. This indicates that CMC usage impacted emotional security 
among dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. These findings 
corroborate literature by Alarcon and Lyons (2011), who described the use of CMCs as a 
multi-faceted concept built on positive emotions related to the level of engagement and 
relationship. This is because most participants reported through CMCs, they could better 
express themselves and freely share aspects of themselves that they felt were important to 
their partners at any time. In addition, a study done in a Kenyan college by Mwangi 
(2016) revealed similar findings that college students used social media to maintain 
romantic relationships because an individual.s emotional security level in the 
relationship was determined by the experiences they got from using social media in their 
romantic relationship. 

 

4.4.3 The relationship between CMC Usage and Trust Levels 

Objective three of the study sought to identify the relationship between CMC usage and 
trust levels amongst dating undergraduate students within universities in Mombasa. To 
obtain this relationship, the following null hypothesis was formulated: 

 H03: There is no statistically significant relationship between CMC usage and trust levels 
amongst dating undergraduate students. 

 

The researcher conducted a Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (r). to test 
this hypothesis. The p value was calculated at a significance level of 0.05. To obtain more 
accurate and reliable results, a 2-tailed test was carried out to detect both positive and 


negative effects. Table 4.4 shows the result of the Pearson product Moment Correlation 
Coefficient between CMC usage and trust levels. 

Table 4. 4 

Pearson Correlation between CMC usage and trust Levels 

 

The results established that there was a statistically significant positive correlation 
between CMC usage and the trust levels amongst dating undergraduate students, r (350) = 
0.777, P=0.007<0.05. The correlation coefficient was found to be 0.777 and the p-value 
was 0.007 which was lesser than 0.05 hence there was a significant relationship. This 
implied that increased levels of usage of CMCs increased with trust were correlated with, 
while decreased levels of trust were associated with decreased use of CMCs. In addition, 
the mean value was 4.1588 (SD= .53620) implying that indeed there was a relationship 
between computer-mediated communications and trust levels amongst university students 
in universities within Mombasa County. In reference to these findings, the null hypothesis 
indicating that there was no significant relationship between CMC usage and trust levels 
was rejected and the alternative accepted. In this regard therefore, the study concluded that 
indeed there existed a statistically significant relationship between computer-mediated 
communications (CMC) usage and trust levels among dating undergraduate students in 
universities in Mombasa County at 5% significance level. 

 


Results on relationship between CMC usage and trust levels revealed a strong positive 
relationship and this indicated that CMC usage had influence on the trust levels among 
dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. These findings concur 
with Bergdall et al., 2012 who revealed that when normal communication is disrupted, 
people tend to start suspecting infidelity, illness, or loss of interest in the relationship, and 
that CMCs played an important role in building trust between individuals in romantic 
relationship. In contrast to these findings, a report by the UNHRC (2019) found that the 
nature of internet communication has greatly expanded, computer-mediated 
communication has become an ongoing part of daily life, and the use of CMCs has 
increased and continues to increase and this has resulted to many conflicting reports 
related to trust issues in relationships and marriages. This can be explained by the rising 
rates of breakups, separation and divorce cases among the young adults in Kenya 
according to a recent data released in June, 2022 by the Judiciary (SOJAR, 2022). 

 

4.4.4 Possible strategies that would promote responsible CMC usage among 
undergraduate students in romantic relationship. 

Objective four of this study sought to identify possible strategies that would promote 
responsible CMC usage among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County. In answering open-ended interview questions, the respondents expressed their 
views and also touched on their interpretations, shared their personal experiences with 
incidences of CMC usage among students in universities. The key informants were in 
four categories: 2 student leaders from each university, 1 dean of students from each 
university, 2 senior lecturers from each university and 1 counselor from each university. 


The content and thematic analysis that the researcher made on the interview manuscripts 
yield the following findings as discussed below. 

 

Firstly, the researcher wanted to know whether the university administration had recorded 
cases of romantic relationship issues related to CMC usage over the last 5 years. 
Responding to a question on what type of indiscipline cases related to CMCs and 
romantic relationship were reported, first respondent noted: 

Over the past 5 years we have had several cases of students committing suicide due 
to love wrangles, others simply defer semesters after going through dramatic 
heartbreaks that were associated with mobile phone platforms. Also, some students 
have been sent away from class/exam rooms after been caught chatting with their 
partners on mobile phones which is against the university regulations. As a result, 
poor performance and class attendance have been recorded. 

Another respondent indicated that general performance in school had gone down due to 
spending more time on CMCs for most students in romantic relationship instead of 
investing more time in their studies. 

 

The second respondent reported: 

The use of CMCs among the students has become a very treasured tool of 
communication in this era, a thief of time such that it has become very addictive 
among students. Many students spend too much time on different social networking 
sites with their partners at the expense of their studies. Also, some students have 
been caught sneaking mobile phones to exam rooms to convey answers to their 
partners through text messaging. This has consequently affected their performance 
and class attendance in school as they have become too lazy and not willing to work 
hard. 


Similar findings indicated that time spent on CMCs had increased among the students. 
According to the respondent, most of the students in romantic relationship missed out 
classes or were not attentive in class as they were on phones or laptops chatting with their 
partners. 

 

Third respondent stated: 

CMC usage among the students is addictive as they concentrate so much on their 
communication devices for many hours forgetting to create time for their studies. A 
number of students were sent out of class by the lecturers as they were found on 
phones chatting instead of participating in classwork. 

The above statement is consistent with a study by Chen and Peng (2008) that examined 
the relationship between internet usage and academic performance among undergraduate 
students, with emphasis on; interpersonal relationships, psychosocial adjustment and self-
evaluation. Interestingly, the researchers started by identifying heavy Internet users based 
on study of young adults 20 years earlier, in which they defined heavy users as those who 
use the Internet for personal needs for more than 38 hours per week. In their study, Chen 
and Peng (2008) found that that heavy users, who are strictly above average, spent just 
under 34 hours online per week hence the need to readjust the representation of heavy 
users. Results noted significant differences between heavy and non-heavy users, including 
interpersonal relationships, psychosocial adjustment, self-evaluation and academic 
performance. In conclusion, non-intensive users were found to have good relationships 
with university staff, their performance was impressive and their learning was highly 
satisfying, whereas heavy users were prone to suffering from depression, physical 
sickness, loneliness and became more introverted. 

 


Responding to a question on whether there was a need to put measures in place to control 
CMC usage in the universities, the respondents said that some strategies can be adopted 
to ensure CMC usage among university students in check. The data from the key 
informants established the following measuresamong the respondents; training programs 
on the use of CMCs, creation of awareness on CMC usage, availability of resources in the 
universities, adoption of health-promotion practices and establishment of policies to 
regulate CMC usage among students. 

Other ways established in the study for promoting responsible CMC usage in romantic 
relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County included; setting specific days or time where CMCs are not used , identify certain 
zones within the university where CMC devices such as phones, tablets and laptops are 
prohibited. Such measures are currently being implemented during examination sessions, 
where students are not allowed to use their cell phones during exams as part of university 
rules and regulations. Also, switching off pop-up apps or ensuring all gadgets are on 
silent or an airplane to prevent any sort of unnecessary distractions during the exams. 

 

Data collected from the interviews showed that there were inadequate training programs 
initiated in the universities to train the students on responsible usage of CMCs. Therefore, 
the respondents suggested that training programs was an important method that would 
promote responsible use of CMCs among university students in romantic relationship. 
The following respondent acknowledged the importance of training programs on CMCs 
application among university students in romantic relationship. 

 

 

 

 


Fourth respondent noted: 

While many of the current generation of students are computer and internet literate, 
many still have little or no computer or electronic networking experience. Thus, 
carefully planned training programs are imperative for students and an assessment 
of their needs would be conducted. Training and continuing assistance will enable 
the students become responsible in their CMC usage and thus enjoy relationship 
satisfaction. 

Further, findings from the interviews indicated that no creation of awareness on CMC 
usage was done among university students in romantic relationship. Therefore, the 
respondents suggested that there was a need to create awareness on CMC usage among 
university students in romantic relationship. The fifth respondent reported: 

The university through national government allocation should budget and offer 
some incentives for creation of awareness and campaigns on healthy CMC usage in 
the universities. The students need to be informed on where, when and how to use 
the CMCs to communicate with their partners effectively. This is because majority 
of the students are not aware of the negative use of CMCs for individuals in 
romantic relationship, which consequently affects the society values. 

 

Several respondents suggested that adequate provision of resources in the universities to 
support new technologies such as CMC usage was needed. The sixth respondent 
reported: 

The available resources at the moment are not adequate for both parents and the 
government to pull support needed to ensure a healthy and safe use of digital 
technology among students in the universities. As a result, it has become so 
difficult to monitor the usage of CMCs among the students. Therefore, once the 


resources needed are provided, the universities will get apps of monitoring the use 
of CMCs devices among the students. This single step will help draw limits on 
CMCs use and therefore reduce the time one spends on CMCs as well as protecting 
and building healthy relationships. The user’s personal discipline will be key to 
achieve this. 

 

Findings obtained through the interviews support the adoption of health-promoting 
approaches that give recognition of the broader aspects of health affected by CMC usage 
among university students in romantic relationship. A respondent noted: 

Being aware of both the negative and positive health effects of CMCs on health will 
help the youth, parents, and lecturers to recognize this effect and be on alert, and 
perhaps find ways to regulate the use of CMCs and take steps to maximize its 
beneficial health aspects and control its negative effects. 

 

Another respondent agreed to the idea of improving the usage of CMCs among the 
undergraduate students and made the following statement: 

From my personal observation, controlling CMC usage among the students is an 
uphill task since we are in the modern world where one is said to be outdated if they 
are not in any romantic relationship in the university. The use of CMCs is positively 
correlated with social capital formation and maintenance. Therefore, students 
should be encouraged to utilize the channel to secure job and business 
opportunities outside of school to pursue their dreams. 

 

The findings from the interviews recognized that university students would profit from 
controlling CMC usage both in terms of the duration of use or time spent and activities 


involved. These kinds of discussions therefore set boundaries on the use of CMCs, help 
promote very healthy CMC practices and are the most beneficial to the overall physical, 
mental, and social well-being of undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County. This implied that the respondents agreed to have irresponsibly used CMCs in 
their romantic relationships. Lastly, the key informants recommended for immediate 
government intervention to ensure responsible CMC usage among university students. 

 

This matched findings by Kirschner and Karpinski (2010) who looked specifically at 
Facebook use and academic performance. The researchers hypothesized that Facebook 
users are more likely to make errors while learning or studying since they often multitask 
by going back and forth between Facebook and other learning activities. The researchers 
surveyed 102 undergraduate and 117 graduate students on their rate of using Facebook, 
grade point average, and time spent on studies. The findings revealed that Facebook 
users, about 64% of the study cases, spent fewer hours per week studying and hence had 
lower average scores. This was also confirmed by Chamberlin (2011) who found that 
children and adolescents who used Facebook more frequently had more mental health 
issues and lower grades than their peers who used Facebook less frequently. 

 

Similarly, findings by Morey, Gentzler, Creasy, Oberhauser, & Westerman (2013), who 
studied the relevance of technology in maintaining romantic relationships. The study 
affirmed technology as a stand-in for intimacy, a significant focal point for romantic 
relationships and an key objective of the attachment systems. Thus, if responsibly used, 
there would be less conflicting issues relating to computer mediated communications. 

 

 


CHAPTER FIVE 

SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

 

5.1 Introduction 

This chapter contains research summary, conclusions and recommendations. A summary 
section includes a discussion of the results as derived from the analysis and highlights the 
key findings. The conclusion section presents a discussion of the results of analysis in 
accordance to the study objectives drawn from the results. Recommendations for future 
research are also included in this chapter. 

5.2 Summary of the findings 

This section presents the summary of findings in line with the study objectives. The first 
objective of the study sought to establish the relationship between the intimacy levels and 
CMC usage amongst dating undergraduate students within universities in Mombasa 
County. A null hypothesis was tested: H01: There is no statistically significant 
relationship between CMC usage and intimacy levels amongst dating undergraduate 
students. The study findings showed that there was a statistically significant positive 
correlation between the CMC usage and intimacy levels amongst dating undergraduate 
students, r (350) = 0.554, P=0.004<0.05. This implied that higher intimacy levels were 
correlated with increased CMC usage, while lower levels of intimacy were correlated 
with decreased usage of CMCs. The mean value was 4.3120 and the SD was .37975. This 
is an indication that CMC usage had influence on the intimacy levels among dating 
undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. 

 

The second objective sought to establish the relationship between CMC usage and 
emotional security amongst dating undergraduate students within universities in 


Mombasa County. A null hypothesis was tested: H02: There is no statistically significant 
relationship between and CMC usage and emotional security amongst dating 
undergraduate students. Findings revealed that there was a statistically significant positive 
correlation between the CMC usage and emotional security amongst dating undergraduate 
students, r (350) = 0.784, P=0.008<0.05. The mean value was 4.1265 (SD= .37970). This 
implied that higher emotional security levels were correlated with increased CMC usage, 
while lower levels of emotional security were correlated with decreased usage of CMCs. 
These findings indicate that CMC usage had influence on the emotional security among 
dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. 

 

The third study objective sought to establish the relationship between CMC usage and 
trust levels amongst dating undergraduate students within universities in Mombasa. A 
null hypothesis was tested: H03: There is no statistically significant relationship between 
CMC usage and trust levels amongst dating undergraduate students. The study results 
revealed there was a statistically significant positive correlation between the CMC usage 
and trust levels and amongst dating undergraduate students, r (350) = 0.777, 
P=0.007<0.05. The mean value was 4.1588 (SD= .53620). This implied that increased 
levels of trust were correlated with increased usage of CMCs, while lower levels of trust 
were correlated with decreased usage of CMCs. This is an indication that CMC usage had 
influence on the trust levels among dating undergraduate students in universities in 
Mombasa County. 

 

This fourth study objective find out the possible strategies that would promote responsible 
CMC usage among undergraduate students in romantic relationship in universities within 
Mombasa County. The researcher conducted interviews on the selected participants. The 
content and thematic analysis that the researcher performed on the interview manuscripts 


yielded the following findings; firstly, responding to the question on whether there have 
cases of romantic relationship issues related to CMC usage reported to the university 
administration, the study established that there were several students with discipline 
matters related to CMCs and romantic relationship. 

 

Another respondent indicated that general performance in school had gone down due to 
spending more time on CMCs for most students in romantic relationship instead of 
investing more time well in their studies. It was reported that most of the students in 
romantic relationship missed out classes or were not attentive in class as they spent more 
time on phones or laptops chatting with their partners thus spending too much time on 
CMCs and this was found to negatively affect their performance in school. 

 

The data from the key informants also suggested the following strategies among the 
respondents; training programs on the use of CMCs, creation of awareness on CMC 
usage, availability of resources in the universities, adoption of health-promotion practices 
and establishment of policies to regulate CMC usage among students. 

 

Other ways established in the study of promoting responsible CMC usage in romantic 
relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County included; setting specific days or time where CMCs were not used, identify 
certain zones within the university where CMC devices such as phones, tablets and 
laptops was prohibited. 

5.3 Conclusions of the Study 

The main objective of this study was to examine relationship between Computer-
Mediated Communications (CMCs) and relationship satisfaction among dating 


undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. This section provides the 
conclusions of the study in line with the study objectives. 

 

Under the first study objective, the findings revealed that there was a positive relationship 
between CMC usage and intimacy levels among the participants. Hence it can be 
concluded that CMC usage has influence on the intimacy levels of dating undergraduate 
students in universities in Mombasa County. 

 

Under the second study objective, the researcher established that there existed a very 
strong relationship between CMC usage and emotional security among the participants. 
Thus, it can be concluded that CMC usage has influence on the emotional security among 
dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. 

 

Under the third objective, the study revealed that there existed a positive relationship 
between CMC usage and the trust levels among the participants. Therefore, it can be 
concluded that CMC usage had influence on the trust levels among dating undergraduate 
students in universities in Mombasa County. 

 

The fourth study objective sought to find out the possible strategies that would promote 
responsible CMC usage among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County. The content and thematic analysis that the researcher performed on the interview 
manuscripts yielded findings as follows. Firstly, results showed that CMC usage and 
romantic relationships among undergraduate students over the last five years had become 
an issue of concern in the universities. The respondents reported that there were several 
students with discipline matters related to CMC usage and romantic relationship that 
called for the university administration intervention. 


 

Secondly, findings from the respondents established that most of the students in romantic 
relationship missed out classes or were not attentive in class as they spent more time on 
phones or laptops chatting with their partners thus spending too much time on CMCs. As 
a result, productivity in school had decreased among most of these students. 

 

Thirdly, data from the key informants (interview respondents) also suggested the 
following strategies; training programs on the use of CMCs, creatinf CMC usage 
awareness, availability of resources in the universities, adoption of health-promotion 
practices and establishment of policies to regulate CMC usage among students. Other 
ways established in the study of promoting responsible CMC usage in romantic 
relationship satisfaction among undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa 
County included; setting specific days or time where CMCs were not used, identify 
certain zones within the university where CMC devices such as phones, tablets and 
laptops were prohibited. Hence, the study concluded that the CMC usage influenced 
romantic relationship satisfaction, therefore, the measures recommended in this study 
would promote responsible CMC usage among the students. 

 

Conclusively, the Pearson correlation coefficients implied that all variables employed in 
this study had a positive correlation with CMC usage amongst undergraduate students in 
universities in Mombasa County. Also, on testing the hypothesis, there was enough 
evidence that intimacy, emotional security and trust levels influenced CMC usage among 
dating undergraduate students in universities in Mombasa County. Therefore, the results 
depict that there existed a notable relationship between computer-mediated 
communications and relationship satisfaction as discussed in this research work. Lastly, 


these findings were evident that there was need for immediate government intervention to 
ensure responsible CMC usage among university students. 

5.4 Recommendations of the Study 

In this section, the researcher gives recommendations based on the study conclusions 
rather than definite ones. The recommendations for policy and further studies were as 
follows in accordance to the research objectives. 

5.4.1 Recommendations for Policy 

Based on the findings, the study makes the following recommendations. Firstly, the study 
recommends for awareness creation/campaigns to educate students/young adults on 
responsible usage of CMCs. Recommendation is made to the government of Kenya 
through the Ministry of Education to establish such programmes in the universities across 
the country. 

 

Secondly, the findings depict that there exists a significant relationship between 
computer-mediated communications and romantic relationship satisfaction as discussed in 
this research work. Therefore, the researcher recommends establishment of new policies 
in universities to regulate the usage of CMCs among university students. 

 

Thirdly, the study recommends massive provision of counselling services to university 
students through the Ministry of Health and in collaboration with the NGOs, to mentor 
them into self-aware adults. This will equip the students with knowledge and skills in 
handling relationship issues, proper communication and enhance their performance in 
school. This will also reduce suicide cases or love wrangles associated with CMC usage 
among students in romantic relationship in universities. 

 


Fourthly, the study recommends for a quick implementation of the ways suggested herein 
to ensure responsible CMC usage among students in universities in Mombasa County and 
Kenya at large. This because if the students know how to use CMCs in the correct ways, 
they will get the highest benefit from using the technology such as maintaining their 
relationships and promoting a conducive environment for schooling. 

5.4.2 Recommendation for Further Research 

The following suggestions were made from this study for further research. Firstly, the 
researcher proposed that a future study can be conducted to assess the measures of 
engagement (absorption, dedication and vigor) against personal and professional use of 
CMCs. This may shed more light on which facets interact more strongly with the 
dimension of tele-coupling engagement. 

 

Secondly, a recommendation for further research would be to initiate studies in ddifferent 
populations, industries or methodologies, such as qualitative studies. 

 

Thirdly, the researcher recommends for further studies to be conducted on other variables 
apart from intimacy, emotional security and trust levels to establish the extent to which 
other factors are related to CMC usage. 

 

Fourthly, a comparative study needs to be done between Mombasa County and other 
counties or other social networking software. 

 

Lastly, the nature of the analysis in this study is correlational and does not imply 
causation, hence, further similar studies should be conducted to investigate the causal 
pattern.


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APPENDICES 

APPENDIX 1: INFORMED CONSENT FORM 

 

 

 


APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR THE STUDENTS 


 


 

SECTION C: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CMC USAGE AND INTIMACY IN 
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS' ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS 

Indicate in the scale of 1-5, the extent to which you agree with the statement; Where: 

1 = Strongly Disagree; 2 Disagree; 3 = Neutral; 4 = Agree and that; 5 Strongly Agree 

Q/No. 

Description 

Response Rate Scale of 1- 5 

Strongly 

Disagree 

 

1 

Disagree 

 

 

2 

Neutral 

 

 

3 

Agree 

 

4 

 

Strongly 

Agree 

 

5 

1. 


CMCs create intimacy 
in my romantic 
relationship. 

 

 

 

 

 

2. 


I am happiest when 
using CMCs to 
talk/connect with my 
partner 

 

 

 

 

 

3. 


Increased use of 
CMCs has made me 
achieve higher levels 
of intimacy in my 
relationship 

 

 

 

 

 

4. 


Amount of time spend 
on CMCs does not 
correspond with 
intimacy in my 
relationship. 

 

 

 

 

 

5. 


To me, the intimacy 
level is higher when 
using CMCs than 
face to face 
meetings. 

 

 

 

 

 



Other than the above; what are the other aspects of CMC usage that affect intimacy in your 
romantic relationship? 

 



 


 


 


 


 


 


APPENDIX 3: INTERVIEW GUIDE 

 


APPENDIX 4: NACOSTI PERMIT 

 


APPENDIX 5: UNIVERSITY LETTER