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A Netnography Study About Wapa as a Mobile Dating Application

Year 2018, , 343 - 367, 15.12.2018
https://doi.org/10.17572/mj2018.2.343367

Abstract

This study examines gender performances and communication styles on mobile dating applications (MDAs) in the context of queer theory with the help of netnography methodology. The research was conducted with Wapa users from Turkey. Wapa can be defined as a popular, location-based, and real-time dating application for lesbians. The research examines the self-presentation narratives from the contents of user accounts and focuses on the user experiences that were obtained via online interviews. Based on the findings, this study contributes to the literature about communication, technology, and gender studies by revealing both male and female masculinity in a mobile communication environment. Although MDA technology is considered an opportunity for users to specify their preferred age range, proximity and sexual orientation, the mobile environment is also an area where stereotyping about queer identities is reproduced and circulates.

References

  • Albury, Kath, and Paul Byron (2014). “Queering Sexting and Sexualisation”, Media International Australia, incorporating Culture and Policy, 153, 138 - 147.
  • Andeson, Joel and Koc, Yasin (2015). “Exploring patterns of explicit and implicit anti-gay attitudes in Muslims and Atheists”, European Journal of Social Psychology, 45, 687-701.
  • Blackwell, Courtney, Jeremy Birnholtz, and Charles Abbott (2015). “Seeing and being: Co-situation and impression formation using Grindr, a location-aware gay dating app”, New Media&Society, 17(7), 1117-1136.
  • Bindel, Julie (2011). “What straight men don't understand about lesbians”, The Guardian, 14.
  • June 2011, http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jun/14/men-dont-understand-lesbians-bindel (accessed: June 01, 2016).
  • Bumgarner, Brett A (2013). “Mobilizing the gay bar: Grindr and the layering of spatial context”, Paper presented at the Conference of the International Communication Association, London, UK,17–21 June.
  • Butler, Judith (1990). Gender Trouble: Feminism and Subversion of Identity, Routledge, New York.
  • Bryson, Mary (2007). “When Jill jacks in: Queer women and the Net”, Feminist Media Studies, 4(3), 239-254.
  • Castells, Manuel, Mieria Fernandez Ardevol, and Araba Sey (2007). Mobile Communication and Society, The MIT Press, USA.
  • Corriero, Elena Francesca, and Stephania Tom Tong (2016). “Managing uncertainty in mobile dating applications: Goals, concerns of use, and information seeking in Grindr”, Mobile Media & Communication, 4(1), 121-141.
  • Cserni, Robert T. and Talmud , Ilan (2015). “To Know that you are Not Alone: The Effect of Internet Usage on LGBT Youth’s Social Capital”, in Laura Robinson , Shelia R. Cotten , Jeremy Schulz (ed.) Communication and Information Technologies Annual - Studies in Media and Communications, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Volume 9, 161-182.
  • Daniels, Chris (2015). “Love in a Digital Age,” PRWeek, U.S. Edition, September 2015, 18 (9), 32-33.
  • De Wiele, Chad Van, and Stephanie Tom Tong (2014). “Breaking Boundaries: The Uses & Gratification of Grindr” , UbiComp 14, Proceedings of the 2014 ACM International Joint Conference on Pervasive and Ubiquitous Computing, USA, 619-630.
  • Duyan, Veli & Gelbal, Selahattin (2004). “Lezbiyen ve geylere yönelik tutum (LGYT) ölçeği: güvenirlik ve geçerlik çalışması”, (Attitudes toward lesbians and gays (LGYT) scale: reliability and validity study), Turkish Journal of HIV/AIDS, 7, 106–112.
  • Eves, Alison (2004).“Queer Theory, Butch/Femme Identities and Lesbian Space”, Sexualities, 7(4): 480-496.
  • Farnden, Jody; Martini, Ben; Choo, Kim-Kwang Raymond (2015). “Privacy Risks in Mobile Dating Apps,” In Proceedings of 21st Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS 2015), 13-15 August 2015, Association for Information Systems, Puerto Rico.
  • Frey, Wendy Turner (2014). “Homophobia is a Global Issue,” Social Work, 59(3), National Association of Social Workers, July.
  • Gottschalk, Simon, and Marko Salvaggio (2015). “Stuck Inside of Mobile: Ethnography in Non-Places”, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 44(1) 3–33.
  • Halperin, David M. (2003). “The Normalization of Queer Theory”, Journal of Homosexuality, 45:2-4, 339-343.
  • Halberstam, Judith [Jack] (1998). Female Masculinity, Duke University Press.
  • Hirsman, Linda (2012). Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution, New York, Harper.
  • Hoang, Nguyen Phong, Yasuhito Asano, and Masatoshi Yoshikawa (2016). “Your Neighbors Are My Spies: Location and other Privacy Concerns in GLBT-focused Location-based Dating Applications”, ICACT Transactions on Advanced Communications Technology (TACT), Vol.5, Issue 3, May 2016, 851-860.
  • ILGA (The InternationaL Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association) (2015). The Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Map of World Laws, http://old.ilga.org/Statehomophobia/ILGA_WorldMap_2015_ENG.pdf (accessed: June 2016)
  • Jäckle, Sebastian (2015). “Religion, Religiosity, and the Attitudes Toward Homosexuality-A Multilevel Analysis of 79 Countries”, Journal of Homosexuality, 62 (2), 207-241.
  • Jones RH (2005). “‘You show me yours, I’ll show you mine’: The negotiation of shifts from textual to visual modes in computer-mediated interaction among gay men”, Visual Communication, 4(1): 69-92.
  • Kozinets, Robert V. (2010). Netnography, Sage.
  • Miller, Brandon, and Elizabeth Behm Morawitz (2016). “‘Masculine Guys Only’: The Effects of femmephobic mobile dating application profiles on partner selection for men who have sex with men”, Computer in Human Behaviour, 62, 176-185.
  • Muskat, Mathiass, Birgit Muskat, Anita, Zehrer, Raechel Johns (2013). “Mobile ethnography as an emerging research method”, British Academy of Management/BAM2013 Conference Proceedings.
  • Norcie, Gregory, Emiliano De Cristofaro, Victoria, Bellotti (2013). “Bootstrapping Trust in Online Dating: Social Verification of Online Dating Profiles,” Financial Cryptography and Data Security, FC 2013 Workshops, USEC and WAHC 2013, Okinawa, Japan, April 1, 2013, Revised Selected Papers.
  • Nip, Joyce (2004). “The relationship between online and offlinecommunities: the case of the Queer Sisters”, Media, Culture & Society, 26 (3), 409-428.
  • Pullen, Christopher (ed.) (2014). Queer Youth and Media Cultures, Palgrave Macmillan, England and USA.
  • Rosenfeld, Michael J., and Reuben J. Thomas (2012). “Searching for a mate: The rise of the Internet as a social intermediary”, American Sociological Review, 77(4), 523–547.
  • Sheller, Mimi, and John Urry (2006). “The new mobilities paradigm”, Environment and Planning A, 38 (2), 207–226.
  • Sims, Alexandra (2016). “President Erdogan criticises West for prioritising gay and animal rights over refugees,” Independent, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/president-erdogan-criticises-west-for-priori tising-gay-and-animal-rights-over-refugees-a7032896.html (accessed: July 01, 2016).
  • Smith, Aaron (2016). “15% of American Adults Have Used Online Dating Sites or Mobile Dating Apps,” Pew Research Center, http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/02/11/15-percent-of-american-adults-have-used-online-dating-sites-or-mobile-dating-apps/ (accessed: April 24, 2016).
  • Stampler, Laura (2014). “The New Dating Game,” Time, Feb. 2014: 39-45. Urry, John. 2007. Mobilities, Polity, Cambridge.
  • Urry, John (2007). Mobilites, Polity Press, UK&USA.
  • Wincapaw, Celeste (2008).“The Virtual Spaces of Lesbian and Bisexual Women's Electronic Mailing Lists,” Journal of Lesbian Studies, 1, 45-59.
  • Zawinski, Andrena (1980). “Pornography is Violence against Women,” Off Our Backs, 10 (7), 8-9.

Mobil Flört Uygulaması Wapa Hakkında Bir Netnografi Çalışması

Year 2018, , 343 - 367, 15.12.2018
https://doi.org/10.17572/mj2018.2.343367

Abstract

Bu araştırmada mobil flört uygulamalarında (MFU) cinsiyet performasları ve iletişim biçimleri queer kuram ve netnografi yöntemi ile incelenmiştir. Araştırma Türkiye’deki Wapa kullanıcıları ile gerçekleştirilmiştir. Wapa lezbiyenleri hedef alan popüler, konum bazlı ve gerçek zamanlı bir mobil flört uygulamasıdır. Bu çalışmada Wapa kullanıcılarının profillerinde kendilerini tanıtırken kullandıkları anlatılar incelenmekte ve çevrimiçi mülakatlar aracılığıyla elde edilen kullanıcı deneyimlerine odaklanılmaktadır. Araştırma bulguları bir mobil iletişim ortamında erkek ve kadınların yeniden ürettiği maskülenliğini ortaya çıkararak iletişim, teknoloji ve cinsiyet çalışmalarıyla ilgili literatüre katkıda bulunmaktadır. Araştırma sonunda MFU teknolojisinin kullanıcılara yaş aralığı, coğrafi yakınlık ve cinsel yönelim gibi seçenekler sunmasına karşın; mobil ortamın aynı zamanda queer kimlikler hakkındaki klişeleri yeniden üreten ve dolaşıma sokan bir alan olduğu saptanmıştır.

References

  • Albury, Kath, and Paul Byron (2014). “Queering Sexting and Sexualisation”, Media International Australia, incorporating Culture and Policy, 153, 138 - 147.
  • Andeson, Joel and Koc, Yasin (2015). “Exploring patterns of explicit and implicit anti-gay attitudes in Muslims and Atheists”, European Journal of Social Psychology, 45, 687-701.
  • Blackwell, Courtney, Jeremy Birnholtz, and Charles Abbott (2015). “Seeing and being: Co-situation and impression formation using Grindr, a location-aware gay dating app”, New Media&Society, 17(7), 1117-1136.
  • Bindel, Julie (2011). “What straight men don't understand about lesbians”, The Guardian, 14.
  • June 2011, http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jun/14/men-dont-understand-lesbians-bindel (accessed: June 01, 2016).
  • Bumgarner, Brett A (2013). “Mobilizing the gay bar: Grindr and the layering of spatial context”, Paper presented at the Conference of the International Communication Association, London, UK,17–21 June.
  • Butler, Judith (1990). Gender Trouble: Feminism and Subversion of Identity, Routledge, New York.
  • Bryson, Mary (2007). “When Jill jacks in: Queer women and the Net”, Feminist Media Studies, 4(3), 239-254.
  • Castells, Manuel, Mieria Fernandez Ardevol, and Araba Sey (2007). Mobile Communication and Society, The MIT Press, USA.
  • Corriero, Elena Francesca, and Stephania Tom Tong (2016). “Managing uncertainty in mobile dating applications: Goals, concerns of use, and information seeking in Grindr”, Mobile Media & Communication, 4(1), 121-141.
  • Cserni, Robert T. and Talmud , Ilan (2015). “To Know that you are Not Alone: The Effect of Internet Usage on LGBT Youth’s Social Capital”, in Laura Robinson , Shelia R. Cotten , Jeremy Schulz (ed.) Communication and Information Technologies Annual - Studies in Media and Communications, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Volume 9, 161-182.
  • Daniels, Chris (2015). “Love in a Digital Age,” PRWeek, U.S. Edition, September 2015, 18 (9), 32-33.
  • De Wiele, Chad Van, and Stephanie Tom Tong (2014). “Breaking Boundaries: The Uses & Gratification of Grindr” , UbiComp 14, Proceedings of the 2014 ACM International Joint Conference on Pervasive and Ubiquitous Computing, USA, 619-630.
  • Duyan, Veli & Gelbal, Selahattin (2004). “Lezbiyen ve geylere yönelik tutum (LGYT) ölçeği: güvenirlik ve geçerlik çalışması”, (Attitudes toward lesbians and gays (LGYT) scale: reliability and validity study), Turkish Journal of HIV/AIDS, 7, 106–112.
  • Eves, Alison (2004).“Queer Theory, Butch/Femme Identities and Lesbian Space”, Sexualities, 7(4): 480-496.
  • Farnden, Jody; Martini, Ben; Choo, Kim-Kwang Raymond (2015). “Privacy Risks in Mobile Dating Apps,” In Proceedings of 21st Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS 2015), 13-15 August 2015, Association for Information Systems, Puerto Rico.
  • Frey, Wendy Turner (2014). “Homophobia is a Global Issue,” Social Work, 59(3), National Association of Social Workers, July.
  • Gottschalk, Simon, and Marko Salvaggio (2015). “Stuck Inside of Mobile: Ethnography in Non-Places”, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 44(1) 3–33.
  • Halperin, David M. (2003). “The Normalization of Queer Theory”, Journal of Homosexuality, 45:2-4, 339-343.
  • Halberstam, Judith [Jack] (1998). Female Masculinity, Duke University Press.
  • Hirsman, Linda (2012). Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution, New York, Harper.
  • Hoang, Nguyen Phong, Yasuhito Asano, and Masatoshi Yoshikawa (2016). “Your Neighbors Are My Spies: Location and other Privacy Concerns in GLBT-focused Location-based Dating Applications”, ICACT Transactions on Advanced Communications Technology (TACT), Vol.5, Issue 3, May 2016, 851-860.
  • ILGA (The InternationaL Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association) (2015). The Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Map of World Laws, http://old.ilga.org/Statehomophobia/ILGA_WorldMap_2015_ENG.pdf (accessed: June 2016)
  • Jäckle, Sebastian (2015). “Religion, Religiosity, and the Attitudes Toward Homosexuality-A Multilevel Analysis of 79 Countries”, Journal of Homosexuality, 62 (2), 207-241.
  • Jones RH (2005). “‘You show me yours, I’ll show you mine’: The negotiation of shifts from textual to visual modes in computer-mediated interaction among gay men”, Visual Communication, 4(1): 69-92.
  • Kozinets, Robert V. (2010). Netnography, Sage.
  • Miller, Brandon, and Elizabeth Behm Morawitz (2016). “‘Masculine Guys Only’: The Effects of femmephobic mobile dating application profiles on partner selection for men who have sex with men”, Computer in Human Behaviour, 62, 176-185.
  • Muskat, Mathiass, Birgit Muskat, Anita, Zehrer, Raechel Johns (2013). “Mobile ethnography as an emerging research method”, British Academy of Management/BAM2013 Conference Proceedings.
  • Norcie, Gregory, Emiliano De Cristofaro, Victoria, Bellotti (2013). “Bootstrapping Trust in Online Dating: Social Verification of Online Dating Profiles,” Financial Cryptography and Data Security, FC 2013 Workshops, USEC and WAHC 2013, Okinawa, Japan, April 1, 2013, Revised Selected Papers.
  • Nip, Joyce (2004). “The relationship between online and offlinecommunities: the case of the Queer Sisters”, Media, Culture & Society, 26 (3), 409-428.
  • Pullen, Christopher (ed.) (2014). Queer Youth and Media Cultures, Palgrave Macmillan, England and USA.
  • Rosenfeld, Michael J., and Reuben J. Thomas (2012). “Searching for a mate: The rise of the Internet as a social intermediary”, American Sociological Review, 77(4), 523–547.
  • Sheller, Mimi, and John Urry (2006). “The new mobilities paradigm”, Environment and Planning A, 38 (2), 207–226.
  • Sims, Alexandra (2016). “President Erdogan criticises West for prioritising gay and animal rights over refugees,” Independent, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/president-erdogan-criticises-west-for-priori tising-gay-and-animal-rights-over-refugees-a7032896.html (accessed: July 01, 2016).
  • Smith, Aaron (2016). “15% of American Adults Have Used Online Dating Sites or Mobile Dating Apps,” Pew Research Center, http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/02/11/15-percent-of-american-adults-have-used-online-dating-sites-or-mobile-dating-apps/ (accessed: April 24, 2016).
  • Stampler, Laura (2014). “The New Dating Game,” Time, Feb. 2014: 39-45. Urry, John. 2007. Mobilities, Polity, Cambridge.
  • Urry, John (2007). Mobilites, Polity Press, UK&USA.
  • Wincapaw, Celeste (2008).“The Virtual Spaces of Lesbian and Bisexual Women's Electronic Mailing Lists,” Journal of Lesbian Studies, 1, 45-59.
  • Zawinski, Andrena (1980). “Pornography is Violence against Women,” Off Our Backs, 10 (7), 8-9.
There are 39 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects Communication and Media Studies
Journal Section Articles
Authors

Bilge Narin

Publication Date December 15, 2018
Submission Date December 15, 2018
Acceptance Date December 15, 2018
Published in Issue Year 2018

Cite

APA Narin, B. (2018). A Netnography Study About Wapa as a Mobile Dating Application. Moment Dergi, 5(2), 343-367. https://doi.org/10.17572/mj2018.2.343367