URBANA, IL (Chambana Today) — Mobile apps that allow users to share their location are reshaping how people communicate and manage relationships, according to a new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The research, led by Brian Ogolsky, a professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, surveyed participants across the U.S. and U.K. to explore how and why people share their location with others. On average, respondents shared their location with nearly four people, most often romantic partners, friends, and family members. Popular apps included Find My, Google Maps, Life360, Snapchat, and WhatsApp.
The study identified four main reasons for location sharing: safety, practicality, casual use, and relationship management. Safety was commonly cited with immediate family, while practicality—including coordinating plans and tracking travel—was common with friends and romantic partners. Some users shared locations casually for entertainment, while others used it to maintain trust and communication in relationships.
Ogolsky noted potential downsides, including reduced interpersonal negotiation, reliance on technology for coordination, privacy concerns, and a sense of exclusion or FOMO when observing others’ activities. Younger users, he said, are less concerned with privacy, having grown up in a highly surveilled digital environment.
“Location sharing is moving from primarily safety-related purposes into the realm of relationships, where it changes how and when we communicate,” Ogolsky said. The findings were published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.
