Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures
This article considers the extent that new forms of communication technologies developed in the last half century have contributed to new forms of sexual and romantic relationships flourishing among early adults in the United States. This project pays particular attention to the implications of that...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Lodz University Press
2023-01-01
|
| Series: | Qualitative Sociology Review |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/qualit/article/view/16297 |
| _version_ | 1811165249750958080 |
|---|---|
| author | Alecea Standlee |
| author_facet | Alecea Standlee |
| author_sort | Alecea Standlee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article considers the extent that new forms of communication technologies developed in the last half century have contributed to new forms of sexual and romantic relationships flourishing among early adults in the United States. This project pays particular attention to the implications of that during the 2020 pandemic lockdowns and the increased dependency on technology that followed. This empirical work uses the theoretical framework provided by the scholarship of George Ritzer (2004), which focuses on the social narratives that drive labor into increasingly rational and functionalist operations, which he terms McDonaldization. This project uses interview data collected from college students to explore attitudes and social forms related to casual sex and the development of serious romantic relationships among participants. In an analysis of the data, three key trends have emerged that can be understood within Ritzer’s theoretical frame. Research participants utilize and value technologies within their intimate relationships as information filters that provide efficiency in creating relationships. They also demonstrate the use of technological, organizational, and connective tools as means to control relationships. Finally, technological tools and symbols signal a kind of semi-standardized symbol of commitment to the relationship, though the meaning of these signs is still contested. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:34:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-290d1f0a52f54ee280729c832b2f3e7d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1733-8077 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:34:16Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Lodz University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Qualitative Sociology Review |
| spelling | doaj.art-290d1f0a52f54ee280729c832b2f3e7d2023-02-13T08:44:25ZengLodz University PressQualitative Sociology Review1733-80772023-01-0119162110.18778/1733-8077.19.1.0116046Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating CulturesAlecea Standlee0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4468-7145Gettysburg College, USAThis article considers the extent that new forms of communication technologies developed in the last half century have contributed to new forms of sexual and romantic relationships flourishing among early adults in the United States. This project pays particular attention to the implications of that during the 2020 pandemic lockdowns and the increased dependency on technology that followed. This empirical work uses the theoretical framework provided by the scholarship of George Ritzer (2004), which focuses on the social narratives that drive labor into increasingly rational and functionalist operations, which he terms McDonaldization. This project uses interview data collected from college students to explore attitudes and social forms related to casual sex and the development of serious romantic relationships among participants. In an analysis of the data, three key trends have emerged that can be understood within Ritzer’s theoretical frame. Research participants utilize and value technologies within their intimate relationships as information filters that provide efficiency in creating relationships. They also demonstrate the use of technological, organizational, and connective tools as means to control relationships. Finally, technological tools and symbols signal a kind of semi-standardized symbol of commitment to the relationship, though the meaning of these signs is still contested.https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/qualit/article/view/16297sexual behaviorrelationshipssocial mediatechnology |
| spellingShingle | Alecea Standlee Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures Qualitative Sociology Review sexual behavior relationships social media technology |
| title | Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures |
| title_full | Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures |
| title_fullStr | Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures |
| title_short | Sex, Romance, and Technology: Efficiency, Predictability, and Standardization in College Dating Cultures |
| title_sort | sex romance and technology efficiency predictability and standardization in college dating cultures |
| topic | sexual behavior relationships social media technology |
| url | https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/qualit/article/view/16297 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aleceastandlee sexromanceandtechnologyefficiencypredictabilityandstandardizationincollegedatingcultures |