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Identity, identification and identifiability: the language of self-presentation on a location-based mobile dating app

Published:23 September 2014Publication History

ABSTRACT

Location-aware mobile applications have become extremely common, with a recent wave of mobile dating applications that provide relatively sparse profiles to connect nearby individuals who may not know each other for immediate social or sexual encounters. These applications have become particularly popular among men who have sex with men (MSM) and raise a range of questions about self-presentation, visibility to others, and impression formation, as traditional geographic boundaries and social circles are crossed. In this paper we address two key questions around how people manage potentially stigmatized identities in using these apps and what types of information they use to self-present in the absence of a detailed profile or rich social cues. To do so, we draw on profile data observed in twelve locations on Grindr, a location-aware social application for MSM. Results suggest clear use of language to manage stigma associated with casual sex, and that users draw regularly on location information and other descriptive language to present concisely to others nearby.

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    • Published in

      cover image ACM Conferences
      MobileHCI '14: Proceedings of the 16th international conference on Human-computer interaction with mobile devices & services
      September 2014
      664 pages
      ISBN:9781450330046
      DOI:10.1145/2628363

      Copyright © 2014 ACM

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      Publication History

      • Published: 23 September 2014

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      MobileHCI '14 Paper Acceptance Rate35of124submissions,28%Overall Acceptance Rate202of906submissions,22%

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