Concept of “computer-mediated communication” and “interpersonal relationship” According to Martin Buber's I-Thou philosophy, it is only through respectful dialogue that relationships grow. By being able to be true to ourselves and at the same time allowing others to be equally honest as we dialogue with each other, we build intimacy and therefore create stronger interpersonal bonds. Buber's perception encourages “expressing one's ideas clearly but listening well and honoring those of others (Littlejohn & Foss, 2008, pp. 216-17). Through the exchange of fully engaged dialogue, we exchange personal information about ourselves and learn more about the people in our lives. Although communication as a whole has been studied for centuries, interpersonal communication is a more recent field of interest. Communication scholars have focused on more than just “business process” communication since the late 1940s. By adding the aspect of “shared meaning and relationship building” (Caputo, Hazel, McMahon & Dannels, 2002, p. 9), interpersonal communication has emerged as an essential field to study. Just as the study of communication has changed, so has the way people communicate. While face-to-face (FtF) communication used to be the central mode of interpersonal communication, we now communicate using a variety of tools, including computer-mediated communication. Computer-mediated communication (CMC) was defined by John December as “a process of human communication via computers, involving people, located in particular contexts, engaging in processes to shape media for a variety of purposes.” (Thurlow, Lengel, & Tomic, 2004, p. 15). The medium of communication can impact the approach such as messages… middle of paper… more thoughtful and personal messages that they know the receiver will read when the time is most beneficial to them (Griffin, 2009). CMC creates a feedback system that becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy when CMC users “form highly favorable impressions of each other” (Griffin, 2009, p. 147). Personal information cannot be shared and interpersonal relationships will not grow without communication. Theories of communication that support the deficiencies of CMC are based on filtered signal theories, which state that without face-to-face interaction, the lack of nonverbal signals prevents successful interpersonal communication. These uncertainties of CMC have been condemned through social information processing theory, social penetration theory, and the hyperpersonal communication model. Not only can relationships arise from CMC, but they can also develop and mature using CMC.