Abstract

SEPULVEDA, Rita  and  VIEIRA, Jorge. Online dating platforms: incorporation and integration dynamics on a domestication logic. OBS* [online]. 2020, vol.14, n.3, pp.56-78.  Epub Feb 15, 2022. ISSN 1646-5954.  https://doi.org/10.15847/obsobs14320201579.

Among the set of applications available for smartphones, those specific to online dating have been the focus of attention by the press and academia. However, this interest did not attempt to describe and problematize behaviors within their domestication. In view of this gap, this study aims to identify and characterize usage patterns according to the incorporation phase and conclude with the integration of online dating platforms in the daily lives of its users. To this end, a quantitative methodology was used through the application of a questionnaire distributed online and addressed to Portuguese users of online dating platforms (n = 326). A multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) and a cluster analysis were performed that indicated the existence of three distinct profiles. The profiles differed according to the incorporation dimension in terms of temporality (seniority, frequency and intensity of use) and socialization (initiative in sending the first message, contacting profiles and communicational disruption for no apparent reason), as well as in function of integration dimension (sharing alternative contact, searching for information on online social networks and sharing profiles with others). These characteristics allowed us to conclude that the profiles differ according to experience and more or less consolidated use. In addition, the distinction also resides in the transposition of communicational logics to the wider social media ecosystem, showing the dynamism of the domestication process.

Keywords : Domestication; online dating platforms; smartphones; Portugal; practices.

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