Nationwide research on the uses and motivations of dating apps by young adults in the cultural environment of Turkey

Abstract

Since Tinder's worldwide popularity, location-based dating apps have become widespread. The existing literature mainly focuses on a single app in European and US contexts and pays little attention to other cultural contexts. This paper addresses this gap by examining dating app choices and motivations of young adults (18-29 years old) in Turkey. It examines the intersectionality of socio-demographic variables in a cultural setting that is quite different not only from European and US contexts but also from other Muslim-majority contexts. Deriving from the nationally representative survey (n = 1,498), our research finds statistically significant differences in dating app preferences and adults' motivations regarding location, sexual, gender, and religious identities. This study underlines the crucial role of cultural geography and its social fabric in mobile dating, even within the same national setting.