When less is more: Unifinal framing promotes intention to use social media for social connection

People often wish to rekindle their dormant relationships yet struggle to act on their intentions. This intention-action gap is notable in an era of rising loneliness and surprising in a time marked by unprecedented technological tools for social connection. We propose that one reason for this gap lies in how people evaluate the appropriateness of the means for achieving their social connection goals. Drawing on goal systems theory, we examined whether framing social media platforms as serving a single social connection goal (unifinality) versus multiple goals (multifinality) shapes evaluations of the means and intentions to reconnect with dormant ties. Across three preregistered studies ( N = 1095), unifinal framing increased perceived diagnosticity—the sense that a means is well suited to a focal goal—which in turn enhanced intentions to reconnect. Diagnosticity was empirically distinguishable from perceived instrumentality and more consistently accounted for the effect of framing on intentions to reconnect. These findings highlight goal structure as a key determinant of when people view digital platforms as appropriate tools for meaningful social connection and when they intend to use them for such purposes. We discuss broader implications for how individuals navigate their social goals in increasingly multifinal digital environments and for how technology companies must balance emphasizing multifunctionality with highlighting specific relational affordances.