The Case Study Analysis on Identity Dating Profile

I wish to conduct my own case study on Identity dating profile in this essay in the context of dating apps in order to come to more implications regarding internet dating users and our society at large. The digital age has transformed intimacy and relationships. As Bauman argues, mobile dating apps are 'symptomatic of social and technological change that has transformed modern courtship'; with the infrastructure of apps such as Tinder and Hinge facilitating this networked intimacy. Since its founding in 2012, Tinder has been downloaded over 400 million times and has around 57 million active monthly users; with it being particularly popular amongst millennials. The ubiquity and size of this dating app, alongside newer apps such as Hinge and Bumble, has encouraged scholars to investigate the impact of Internet dating and cyberromances in many different contexts; especially surrounding the notion of Identity. One must articulate their identity through a personal profile in order to attract a potential match and the act of swiping left or right on somebody, depending on whether their profile is 'hot or not', has turned dating into a 'commodified game'. Popular claims from scholars, such as Gibbs, Ellison and Heino contend that this commodification has had vast consequences on people's self-presentation as “using the internet to meet potential dating partners present individuals with new challenges in regard to self-disclosure behaviours” which has, in turn, led to online self-presentation that is more 'selective, malleable and subject to self-critique'. 

Literature Review in the Context of Dating Profile and Identity

In order to comprehensively and objectively analyse identity in the context of dating apps, we must first define the term “identity” in its theoretical context. Sociological definitions tend to revolve around identity as an action that you perform in everyday life. The social psychologist Chryssochoou suggests that “identity is a particular form of social representation” and that “through active participation in the social world, individuals construct a set of knowledge about the world and themselves” which can be defined as their identity. Bilgrami offers an opposing, more political definition of identity; arguing that it is simply what you are and 'what you conceive yourself to be'. For the purpose of this essay I shall be aligning myself with Chryssochoou and defining identity as something that we do. In the context of dating apps, one must perform and present their identity and so this seems like the most appropriate definition in this circumstance.

The computerized age, to which we currently belong, has increased our control over self-representation. We are able to manipulate our identities online in ways that would be impossible in the tangible world. Theorists have suggested that this user autonomy has fundamentally altered identity and our perception of identity in the modern age and so these suggestions must be considered when analysing construction of identity on dating apps.

We are able to present a highly selective version of ourselves online as we have the ability to control what we do and do not allow others to see. Duguay argues that this “raises great concerns regarding authenticity when it comes to digitally mediated dating”. Gibbs, Ellison and Heino echo this concern as their research proves that users of internet dating apps believe that being honest on their profile has a negative effect on their online dating success. As a result, it is clear that judging a book by its cover is a risk when navigating apps such as Tinder as we cannot be sure of somebody's authentic, true self when hiding behind screens. Some scholars would dispute this and argue that the inclusion of features such as a “biography or private message allows users to know more about their potential partner before meeting them” that move beyond the physical appearance. However, a study conducted by Toma, Hancock and Ellison used a sample of heterosexual dating app users and concluded that around “80% of respondents included content in their profile that was contradictory to at least one of their observable characteristics”. As a result, it is evident that no current features available on dating apps are effective enough at curbing identity deception. This scale of dishonesty has given rise to the new term “catfishing” in our modern language. This term can be defined as “the current internet trend of creating and portraying complex fictional identities through online profiles” and I wish to analyse how dating apps have facilitated these illusionary, dishonest relationships and identities through my research.

I have focused on how user autonomy within dating apps affects self-presentation, but it is important to note that technology has a large part to play when it comes to the construction of identity too. One cannot omit information that they are unable to share and so if the design of a dating app directs and controls the amount and type of personal information that can be shared; then the responsibility cannot be placed solely in the hands of the user if their true and full identity is unable to be revealed. As Macleod and McArthur put forth, dating apps have the power to “determine what types of information can and must be shown front stage and the nature of profile-based communication obscures all information that cannot be included in the performance”. We are only able to construct and perform our identities within the constraints of digital communication tools and many of these tools prioritise practicability over identity. Macleod and McArthur use the presentation of gender on dating apps to exemplify this. The authors argue that gender is constructed on apps such as Tinder as rigid categories that have more to do with “function than identity”. Gender is seen as fluid in contemporary society and so these rigid categories would not allow for many to express their identities on apps such as Tinder; with technology therefore acting as a limiting factor. Through my qualitative analysis, I wish to put these academic claims to the test.

Methods: Interviews and Profile Analysis

I conducted three sets of face-to-face interviews for my qualitative research. I reached out to these four individuals as they are all regular users of dating apps and fall into the most popular age demographic of these sites. These participants would be able to provide the best insight into my research topic. Two participants identified as male and one participant identified as female. Interviewing both male and female participants was important to me as there are gendered expectations on dating apps; such as a man needing to message first, which lead to men and women having different experiences. Furthermore, One of my participants identified as bisexual. Dating apps are predominantly programmed for heterosexual individuals and so I was interested to see whether their experience and self-presentation differed as a result of their sexuality. Each participant had their respective dating profiles visible throughout each interview to encourage them to speak about specific details of their individual profile when answering my questions instead of making generalised comments. Audio recording was used to document each interview and subsequent transcripts were produced from this. Each participant was asked the same questions in the same order. I believe that interviews were the most appropriate method of data collection for my research as they enabled me to explore each participants construction of identity, on dating apps, in more detail than a more restrictive questionnaire or survey.

I also performed a profile analysis of an anonymous tinder profile. Names and pictures have been blurred in Appendix two to ensure privacy. I decided that a profile analysis would enrich my research as it would allow me to analyse the correlation between technology and self-presentation by focusing on the structure, layout and algorithms associated with sites such as Tinder. I discuss my findings, and their relevance to Identity in the context of dating apps, in the next section.

It is evident from my primary research that dating apps do enable and encourage a highly selective presentation of one's identity. Each participant discussed choosing the most attractive pictures of themselves for their profiles and most suggested that they enhanced elements of their personality in order to appear more desirable. Participant 3 stated that she “decides what to post based on how attractive [she] looks. [She] definitely wouldn't post pictures with no make up on [her] dating app profile”. It is incredibly human to be concerned with the way others perceive us, however online dating apps allow us to “manage our behaviour in order to present favourable and appropriate images to others” which restricts accurate, truthful identity portrayal. Participant 1 stated that his dating profile “isn't entirely accurate as the pictures you can see in [his] profile don't look like [him] right now and so in that sense it is a slight exaggeration” with this reinforcing the idea that one may pick and choose which version of themselves they wish to disclose and conceal at a given time. Participant 1 furthered this by stating that he “has only played the guitar for a few months and there's a picture of me holding a guitar on my profile so that would be a slight exaggeration too”. This indicates that self-presentation on dating aps is concentrated around user control which allows individuals to enhance and exaggerate themselves with complete ease. As a result, there is a great deal of responsibility placed on the user when it comes to portraying honest online identities. My participants were born digital natives and so their identity construction both online and offline must be taken into context when analysing their responses as they have grown up in a 'culture of simulation'. Millennials were confronted with advanced technology at an incredibly early age and so they have had to navigate the “eroding boundaries between the real and the virtual” whilst also trying to make sense of themselves. As a result, it can be argued that young adult's may consider their online identities, on things such as dating apps, as elements of their 'actual', “real life” identities as these have been created alongside one another. Therefore, it may not be a case of these digital natives displaying “inaccurate” identities online and could instead be a case of them not representing their identities holistically and completely. There are so many different channels upon which one can perform their identity in the 21st Century and so analysis of identity must take this into consideration. The concept of identity should be viewed as less rigid and fixed. This idea is supported by wider literature, with Bolter asserting that control over online identity is in the hands of the user; however effects of 'the age of the internet and the age of digital, visual, representation' must be acknowledged in tandem.

An individuals desire for popularity, affirmation and success seem to encourage the selective identities that I have discussed previously. Participant 3 states that “success on dating apps is measured by the amount of matcheslikesmessages that you have rather than whether you actually manage to meet up” and that she “uses dating apps because she enjoys scrolling and looking at people. Most of the time I never have the intention of meeting anyone”. As a result, it can be deduced that meeting somebody in the flesh is not always the end goal of dating app use and that many use it simply for an ego boost or confidence pick up. If the dating app user knows that they are not going to be meeting up with any of their matches; then presenting the most desirable version of themselves, instead of the most realistic or accurate, will result in increased dating success and, in turn, increased confidence. Our brains have a newfound imperative, in the 21st Century, to connect with other people. Positive online connection, facilitated by vehicles such as dating apps, releases dopamine and so if an induvial is receiving compliments and praise; they are going to become addicted to the false identity in which they present online. This can cause a multitude of problems; with Participant 3 arguing that dating apps pose a “huge risk to self-esteem” as individuals find it hard to accept the differences between their selective, enhanced identity online and their true persona. Receiving more praise from your idealized online self-presentations than your authentic representations in real life is only going to fuel this fire.

Furthermore, the importance placed on appearance and attractiveness by dating app users reduces identity to a single element. Each of my participants commented on the fact that their attractiveness was the most important quality of themselves that they wished to convey on their profile when answering question 3. Whilst online dating participants are able to represent themselves using a diverse array of multi-media resources, photographs seem to be prioritised. Participant 3 comments that she “does have a bio but most of the time when I'm looking at somebody else I just look at their pictures to see whether or not I want to match”. This importance placed on attractiveness could potentially undermine other aspects of people's personalities and identities that are equally as important and so, as discussed, user control on dating apps can have many negative implications when it comes to identity.

However, one must not ignore the relationship between technology and identity. As seen in Appendix 2, dating apps such as Tinder have a fixed layout and so the user is only able to present themselves within these restraints. My profile analysis confirms that each user may only share a limited amount of pre-determined information about themselves; with this including their name, age, location, 9 images and a brief biography. These features of identity are prioritised by dating apps and so users are forced to adhere to TinderHingeBumble's version of identity instead of their own. As mentioned by my participants, users are not given the space to express their views on life or their values, with the information shared instead being very menial and “superficial”. Imagery is given higher priority on an Individuals profile than any other element and so this reinforces the fact that identity is reduced to a single element when it comes to dating apps. This is a reflection of modern day society, however, with the growth and development of social media encouraging individuals to reduce themselves and others to a simple appearance; with many basing their worth on how they look. Apps such as Tinder have simply capitalised on this.

Conclusion

Having investigated identity in the context of dating apps it can be concluded that both user and technological control have the biggest effect on identity construction online. The way in which identity is expressed online is very much controlled by online platforms such as dating apps and the structures, styles and algorithms associated with them. An individual could be entirely honest with their identity portrayal but still construct a limited, incomplete version of themselves as they are restrained by the features available to them. However, the identity that an Individual chooses to express is very much in the hands of the user, as they are able to select and manipulate the limited information that they are able to express to others. However, societal control underpins both of these elements of identity construction on dating apps. There is a constant pressure to conform to the expectations set out by society and so the structure of dating apps facilitates this compliance in order to appease its audience. This is exemplified through Tinder allowing their users to prioritise the construction and presentation of their appearance. In order to combat deceitful identity portrayal online, problematic societal expectations must first be addressed and studied. Individuals will continue to “catfish” and dating apps will continue to enable this as the concept of 'identity' has been fundamentally distorted by the digital, computerised age and the unprecedented rise of social media. It is clear, from my primary research, that the framework of modern day society must be addressed in tandem when analysing any aspect of one's identity online.