ABSTRACT

Cyclical and bidirectional relationship(s) between technology and today’s romantic gratifications have reformed how people seek romance. On another end, gender performances largely underpin humans’ romantic gratification. This is where Tinder, as a dating application, affords unique opportunities for those seeking romances through portraying gender performances. A number of studies concluded that, in romance-seeking ventures, male’s masculinity and female’s femininity generally remained conformist to their respective biological attributes. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate nuances of gender performances portrayed in dating apps such as Tinder. Since Tinder profile picture, as a form of visual text, is a source rife with gender performance cues, this study focused on the visual component – profile pictures. Profile Picture Protocol (PPP), derived from notable social semiotics frameworks, was established. This study revealed that, albeit a major affinity towards more saturated bright colors in the observed data, color choices in profile pictures were not conclusive to determine gender performatives, mainly due to possible duality in meanings when other elements (body gestures and clothing choices) were taken into consideration. Formal clothing choices were only found in the male group, which was conformist to the previous studies. Foregrounding bodily features was evident in both male and female group’s profile pictures, which indicated that the male group also exuded an element of femininity, which leaned towards contestating the previous findings. Actors’ angles that were frontal as well as eye-level, indicated a need for social closeness and friendliness emulation, were fashionable in both gender groups, which was initially prevalent in the female group. Limitations were put forth. Keywords; profile picture; visual text, social semiotics, gender performance, Tinder


ABSTRAK

Hubungan siklus dan dua arah antara teknologi dan gratifikasi romantisme dewasa ini telah mengubah cara orang mencari hubungan romansa. Di sisi lain, ekspresi gender umumnya mendukung gratifikasi romantis manusia. Di sinilah Tinder, sebagai aplikasi kencan, memberikan peluang unik bagi mereka yang mencari romansa melalui ekspresi gender. Sejumlah penelitian menyimpulkan bahwa, dalam usaha pencarian romansa, maskulinitas pria dan femininitas wanita umumnya tetap mengikuti atribut biologis masing-masing. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengevaluasi ekspresi gender yang digambarkan dalam aplikasi kencan seperti Tinder. Karena gambar profil Tinder, sebagai bentuk teks visual, adalah sumber penuh dengan isyarat ekspresi gender, penelitian ini berfokus pada komponen visual - gambar profil. Profile Picture Protocol (PPP), berasal dari kerangka kerja semiotika sosial terkemuka, dikonstruksikan. Studi ini mengungkap bahwa, meskipun memiliki ketertarikan umum terhadap warna-warna cerah yang lebih jenuh pada data yang diamati, pilihan warna dalam gambar profil tidak konklusif untuk menentukan ekspkresi gender, terutama karena kemungkinan dualitas dalam makna ketika elemen lain (gerakan tubuh dan pilihan pakaian) disertakan dalam pertimbangan. Pilihan pakaian formal hanya ditemukan pada kelompok pria, yang sesuai dengan penelitian sebelumnya. Gambaran tubuh terdepan terlihat dalam gambar profil kelompok laki-laki dan perempuan, yang menunjukkan bahwa kelompok laki-laki juga memancarkan unsur feminitas, yang condong ke arah mengontestasi temuan sebelumnya. Sudut para aktor yang frontal maupun setinggi mata, mengindikasikan keinginan atas kedekatan sosial dan emulasi keramahan, yang umum di kedua kelompok gender, yang awalnya lazim di kelompok perempuan. Keterbatasan penelitian disampaikan. Kata Kunci; teks visual, Semiotika Sosial, performa gender, aplikasi berkencan.

profile picture; visual text, social semiotics, gender performance, Tinder

Baxter, J. (2016). Positioning language and identity. In S. Preece (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Language and Identity (1st ed.). Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2012.0 3.001

Bennett, C. (2015). Victoria’s Secret shows are modern sexism uncovered.

Blackwood, E. (2005). Gender Transgression in Colonial and Postcolonial Indonesia. The Journal of Asian Studies. https://doi.org/10.1017/s002191180500 2251

Bourdieu, P. (1977). The economics of linguistic exchanges. Theories and Methods, 645–668.

Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027

Burghardt, G. M., Bartmess- Levasseur, J. N., Browning, S. A., Morrison, K. E., Stec, C. L., Zachau, C. E., & Freeberg, T. M. (2012). Perspectives - Minimizing Observer Bias in Behavioral Studies: A Review and Recommendations. Ethology. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.14390310.2012.02040.x

Butler, J. (2006). Gender trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge Classics.

https://doi.org/10.1111/1467954X.00090

David, G., & Cambre, C. (2016). Screened Intimacies: Tinder and the Swipe Logic. Social Media + Society, 2(2), 2056305116641976. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116641 976

Demjen, Z. (2016). Narrative, language, and creativity: contemporary approaches. In J. Maybin (Ed.), Narative, Language and Creativity: contemporary approaches (1st ed., pp. 109–157). The Open University.

Dhaenens, F. (2013). Teenage queerness: negotiating heteronormativity in the representation of gay teenagers in Glee representation of gay teenagers in Glee. Journal of Youth Studies, 16(3). https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2012. 718435

Djonov, E., & Zhao, S. (2018). Social Semiotics. In Advancing Multimodal and Critical Discourse Studies. https://doi.org/10.4324/97813155210151

Döring, N., Reif, A., & Poeschl, S. (2016). How gender-stereotypical are selfies ? A content analysis and comparison with magazine adverts. Computers in Human Behavior, 55, 955–962. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.10.00 1

Dörnyei, Z. (2007). Research methods in Applied Linguistics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Edgar, E.-A. (2011). Xtravaganza !: Drag Representation and Articulation in RuPaul’s Drag Race. Studies in Popular Culture, 34(1), 133–146. Retrieved from http://sex.sagepub.com

Fairclough, N. (1995). Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language. Language in social life series (Vol. 81). https://doi.org/10.2307/329335

Felmlee, D., Orzechowicz, D., & Fortes, C. (2010). Fairy Tales : Attraction and Stereotypes in Same-Gender Relationships. Sex Roles, (62), 226–240. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-0099701-x

Goffman, E. (1956). The presentation of self in everyday life. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh, Social Sciences Research Centre. https://doi.org/10.2307/2089106

Gray, J. (2016). Language and non-normative sexual identities. The Routledge Handbook of Language and Identity, 225–240.

Herring, S. C. (2011). Gender , Communication , and Self-Presentation in Teen Chatrooms Revisited : Have Patterns Changed ? Journal of Computational Science, 17, 39–59. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.10836101.2011.01561.x Hodge, R., &

Kress, G. (1988). Social Semiotics. New York: Cornell University Press.

Horst, H. A., & Miller, D. (2012). The Digital and the Human: a Prospectus for Digital Anthropology. In H. A. Horst & D. Miller (Eds.), Digital Anthropology (1st ed., pp. 3–38). London: Berg. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.070399310 4

Hutapea, E. (2017). Identifikasi diri melalui simbol-simbol komunikasi (Studi Interaksionisme Simbolik Komunitas Pemakai Narkoba Di DKI Jakarta). Bricolage: Jurnal Magister Ilmu Komunikasi, 2(01).

Januarti, J., & Wempi, J. A. (2019). Makna tenun ikat dayak sintang ditinjau dari teori semiotika sosial theo van leeuwen. Bricolage: Jurnal Magister Ilmu Komunikasi, 5(01), 73–90.

Johansen, J. D. (1993). Dialogic Semiosis: an essay on signs and meaning. (T. A. Sebeok, Ed.) (1st ed.). Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.

Kress, G., & van Leeuwen, T. (2006). Reading Images The Grammar of Visual Design. Routledge (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO978110741 5324.004

Kwak, H., Lee, C., Park, H., & Moon, S. (2010). What is Twitter, a social network or a news media? In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on World Wide Web, WWW ’10. https://doi.org/10.1145/1772690.177275 1

Leppänen, S., Pitkänen-Huhta, A., PiirainenMarsh, A., Nikula, T., & Peuronen, S. (2009). Young people’s translocal new

media uses: A multiperspective analysis of language choice and heteroglossia. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 14(4), 1080–1107. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.10836101.2009.01482.x

MacKee, F. (2016). Social Media in Gay London: Tinder as an Alternative to Hook-Up Apps. Social Media + Society, 2(3), 2056305116662186. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116662 186

Madianou, M. (2015). Polymedia and Ethnography: Understanding the Social in Social Media. Social Media and Society. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305115578 675

Marengo, D., Giannotta, F., & Settanni, M. (2017). Assessing personality using emoji : An exploratory study. Personality and Individual Differences, 112, 74–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.02.0 37

McLeod, J., & Wright, K. (2016). What does wellbeing do ? An approach to defamiliarize keywords in youth studies. Journal of Youth Studies, 6261(May), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2015. 1112887

Mooers, C. (1997). The Illusions of Postmodernism. Monthly Review. https://doi.org/10.14452/mr-049-051997-09_8

Novarisa, G. (2019). Dominasi patriarki berbentuk kekerasan simbolik terhadap perempuan pada sinetron. Bricolage: Jurnal Magister Ilmu Komunikasi, 5(02), 195–211.

O’Regan, J. P. (2006). The text as a critical object : on theorising exegetic procedure in classroom-based critical discourse analysis. In Critical Discourse Studies (Vol. 3, pp. 179–209). Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group. https://doi.org/10.1080/1740590060090 8111

Ranzini, G., & Lutz, C. (2017). Love at first swipe? Explaining Tinder selfpresentation and motives. Mobile, Media & Communication, 5(1), 80–101. https://doi.org/10.1177/2050157916664

Rinaldo, R. (2014). Pious and Critical: Muslim Women Activists and the Question of Agency. Gender and Society. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243214549 352

Robinson, K. (2008). Gender, Islam and democracy in Indonesia. Gender, Islam and Democracy in Indonesia. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203891759

Rovino, D. (2019). Uncovering" Hidden Messages" in Hillary Clinton’s Concession Speech Post-Presidential Defeat: A Critical Discourse Analysis. Journal of English Language and Culture, 9(2). https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.3081 3/jelc.v9i2.1691

Saraceno, M. J., & Tambling, R. B. (2013). The Sexy Issue: Visual Expressions of Heteronormativity and Gender Identities in Cosmopolitan Magazine. The Qualitative Report, 18, 1–18.

Sedgewick, J. R., Flath, M. E., & Elias, L. J. (2017). Presenting Your Best Self: The Influence of Gender on Vertical Orientation of Selfies on Tinder. Frontiers in Psychology, 8(April), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.0060 4

Shanks, G., & Corbitt, B. (1999). Understanding Data Quality : Social and Cultural Aspects. In 10th Australasian Conference on Information Systems,.

Situmeang, I. V. O. (2017). Internet as communication medium for lovebirds breeders and enthusiasts in jakarta, bogor, solo and yogyakarta. Bricolage: Jurnal Magister Ilmu Komunikasi, 2(01), 15–27.

Small, J. (2017). Women’s “beach body” in Australian women’s magazines. Annals of Tourism Research, 63, 23–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2016.12. 006

Smith, J. (2014). Getting off online: race, gender, and sexuality in cyberspace. In N. Farris, M. A. Davis, & D. R. Compton (Eds.), Illuminating How Identities Stereotypes and Inequalities Matter through Gender Studies Gender. New York: Springer. Sorokowska, A., Oleszkiewicz, A.,

Frackowiak, T., Pisanski, K., Chmiel, A., & Sorokowski, P. (2016). Sel fi es and personality : Who posts self-portrait photographs ? PAID, 90, 119–123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2015.10.0 37

Sumter, S. R., & Vandenbosch, L. (2019). Dating gone mobile: Demographic and personality-based correlates of using smartphone-based dating applications among emerging adults. New Media and Society. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444818804 773

Sumter, S. R., Vandenbosch, L., & Ligtenberg, L. (2017). Love me Tinder: Untangling emerging adults’ motivations for using the dating application Tinder. Telematics and Informatics, 34(1), 67–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2016.04.00 9

Thurlow, C. (2003). Generation Txt? The sociolinguistics of young people’s textmessaging. Retrieved from http://extra.shu.ac.uk/daol/articles/v1/n1 /a3/thurlow2002003-paper.html

Tifferet, S., & Vilnai-yavetz, I. (2014). Gender differences in Facebook selfpresentation : An international randomized study. Computers in Human Behavior, 35, 388–399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2014.03.01 6

Timmermans, E., & De Caluwé, E. (2017). Development and Validation of the Tinder Motives Scale (TMS). Computers in Human Behavior, 70, 341–350. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.01.02 8

Tinder Legal. (2016). Terms of use. Dallas, Texas. Retrieved from https://www.gotinder.com/terms

Trilling, D. (2015). Two Different Debates? Investigating the Relationship Between a Political Debate on TV and Simultaneous Comments on Twitter. Social Science Computer Review, 33(3), 259–276. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439314537 886

Van Leeuwen, T. (2004). Introducing Social Semiotics. Introducing Social Semiotics. Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group. Retrieved from http://orca.cf.ac.uk/3739/

Vokey, M., Tefft, B., & Tysiaczny, C. (2013). An Analysis of Hyper-Masculinity in

Magazine Advertisements. Sex Roles, 68, 562–576. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-0130268-1