TY  - JOUR
T1  - Algorithmic personalization and standardization: Pseudo-individualism in Netflix Korean romantic comedies
TT  - Algoritmik bireyselleştirme ve standardizasyon: Netflix Kore romantik komedilerinde sözde-kişiselleştirme
AU  - Taneri Ersoy, Ecem
PY  - 2026
DA  - April
Y2  - 2026
DO  - 10.26466/opusjsr.1888607
JF  - OPUS Journal of Society Research
JO  - OPUS TAD
PB  - İdeal Kent Yayınları
WT  - DergiPark
SN  - 2791-9862
VL  - 23
IS  - 2026
LA  - en
AB  - This study aims to reveal that Korean romantic comedy series available on the Netflix Turkey platform, while creating the perception of offering the audiences a personalized experience, produce standardized content in line with the principle of pseudo-individualism. The demassification function offered by digital media platforms is fundamentally transforming media consumption habits. On the other hand, according to Adorno and Horkheimer’s theory of the culture industry, media content is fundamentally standardized despite its apparent diversity. Although algorithm-based platforms such as Netflix position the audience as a special group with personalized tastes, this study hypothesizes that Korean dramas, known as K-dramas, offer a uniform consumption experience through similar themes, storylines, and character types. In this study, the most-watched Korean romantic comedy series on Netflix have been selected as examples, and content analysis has been applied to the original synopses of the 31 series on the list. The content analysis showed that despite the personalized recommendations offered to the audience; these series shared a similar fictional structure that repeated universal themes such as love, family relationships, and social status differences. The findings indicated that the demassification experience promised by digital platforms coincided with the pseudo-individualism strategy of the culture industry and that the illusion of infinite choice offered to the audience presents a homogenized content pool. This study aims to contribute to the field by critically evaluating the individualistic consumption perception of new media.
KW  - culture industry
KW  - Algorithmic personalization
KW  - pseudo-individualism
KW  - demassification
KW  - content analysis
N2  - Bu çalışma, Netflix Türkiye platformunda izleyicilere kişiselleştirilmiş bir deneyim sunma algısı yaratırken, aslında sözde kişiselleştirme ilkesine uygun standartlaştırılmış içerik üreten Kore romantik komedi dizilerini ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Dijital medya platformlarının sunduğu kitleselleşmeyi önleme işlevi, medya tüketim alışkanlıklarını temelden dönüştürmektedir. Öte yandan, Adorno ve Horkheimer'in kültür endüstrisi teorisine göre, medya içeriği görünürdeki çeşitliliğine rağmen temelde standartlaştırılmıştır. Netflix gibi algoritma tabanlı platformlar izleyiciyi kişiselleştirilmiş zevklere sahip özel bir grup olarak konumlandırsa da bu çalışma K-dizileri olarak bilinen Kore dizilerinin benzer temalar, hikayeler ve karakter tipleriyle tek tip bir tüketim deneyimi sunduğunu varsaymaktadır. Bu çalışmada, Netflix'te en çok izlenen Kore romantik komedi dizileri örnek olarak seçilmiş ve 31 diziden oluşan listede yapımların orijinal synopsislerine içerik analizi kullanılmıştır. Tematik analiz, izleyicilere sunulan “kişiselleştirilmiş” önerilere rağmen, bu dizilerin aşk, aile ilişkileri ve sosyal statü farklılıkları gibi evrensel temaları tekrarlayan benzer bir kurgusal yapıya sahip olduğunu göstermektedir. Bulgular, dijital platformların vaat ettiği kitleselleşmenin ortadan kalkması deneyiminin, kültür endüstrisinin sözde kişiselleştirme stratejisiyle örtüştüğünü ve izleyicilere sunulan sonsuz seçenek illüzyonunun, homojenleştirilmiş bir içerik havuzu sunduğunu göstermektedir. Bu çalışma, yeni medyanın bireyci tüketim algısını eleştirel bir şekilde değerlendirerek alana katkı sağlamayı amaçlamaktadır.
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UR  - https://doi.org/10.26466/opusjsr.1888607
L1  - https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/5716068
ER  -