The study looked at how virtual communication affects college students' trust and emotional balance. They tested 389 undergraduates and found that females tend to have higher trust levels in both virtual and real-life interactions compared to males. Trust levels also increase as students progress through their college years. Freshmen have the highest emotional balance scores, which decrease as students move up in grade. Virtual trust is linked to real-life trust, with higher virtual trust predicting higher real-life trust.