Near, Far, Wherever You Are: With Whom and Why Do People Use Location Sharing in Relationships

Brian G. Ogolsky, Matthew Rivas-Koehl, Evaline Y. Li, Ghada Kawas, Emily J. Charvat, Christopher R. Maniotes, Jennifer L. Hardesty, Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Human Services, Eastern Illinois University

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships

Published online on April 22, 2026

Abstract

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Ahead of Print.
Location sharing technologies using smartphone applications allow users to share their geolocation with each other in real time. Such sharing is a relational process that requires engagement and negotiation with another person. In the current study we use ...