The French sociologist and philosopher Pierre Bourdieu predicted that the development of technology would lead to a revolution, undermine the foundations of our society and change it. We see how technologies are right now affecting our lives: we are becoming more mobile, we can see and hear what is happening in different parts of the world, and we interact with people at almost any time. In addition, the private is transformed. Events, relationships, family – what was considered personal is now available thanks to social networks. The visual becomes the most significant, in addition to obtaining information using the image is much easier than reading the text. Through modern dating sites even catholic dating is available to you.
Motivation
If we draw an analogy with the Maslow pyramid, we can say that dating sites satisfy almost all of our needs. The dominant need is a romantic relationship and sexual experience, while dating sites allow you to find friends, hone your social skills, practice flirting, or just learn something new. A frequent motive is also an attempt at a kind of therapy after breaking up with a partner.
In addition to the need for socialization, users satisfy their intercultural and intellectual curiosity. While traveling abroad, we can go to a dating site and see how the representatives of a particular country live, what they are interested in, what places they visit. In addition, you even have the opportunity to focus on christian dating.
There are specific and motives that are typical for users from some countries – this is the use of dating sites for the practice of a foreign language, as well as the search for business partners or neighbors for joint rental housing.
Theories of Self-Presentation
When talking about users of any social networks, and especially online dating sites, the topic of self-presentation will inevitably arise. Existing theories of self-presentation can be conditionally divided into two groups: self-presentation for oneself and self-presentation for others. American sociologists George Herbert Mead and Charles Cooley viewed self-presentation as a means of shaping the Image-I. Entering into interaction with someone, we form a certain image of ourselves and test it on others.
The American sociologist Irwin Hoffman says that self-presentation is a means of organizing one’s own behavior. We try on certain social roles and patterns that we saw before that, and which, we think, are suitable for a particular situation. Hoffman, Mead and Kule believe that self-presentation is not miscalculated strategically: we do not plan to make this or that movement in advance, but follow some kind of internal understanding of ourselves.
American psychologist Leon Festinger, author of the theory of cognitive dissonance, on the contrary, considered self-presentation as a strategic necessity. He argued that self-presentation is needed to eliminate this very cognitive dissonance: we have an idea of ourselves, and those around us must confirm that everything is really so.
Show yourself
Now social networks are as close as possible to real life, and in order to try on some other personality, you will have to make some efforts. When a user thinks about what part of himself should be presented on a dating site, he has a certain premise. If the goal is friendship, then most likely the user will not lie, but if the user is looking for random connections or wants to increase self-esteem, then the likelihood of fraud is high.
The first thing we see in the profile when we find someone on a dating site is a photograph. A photo is a representation of oneself and a narrative through a visual component. Through a set of 6 profile photos, we tell a story about what matters to us, where we were or love to be, and what social practices we are inclined to.
