Narcissism, Love and Consumption

Sammanfattning: Online dating is growing rapidly within society. In the light of the covid-19 pandemic, the popular online dating app Tinder provides a new social setting for dating and romantic relationships. There is some debate whether online dating apps liquify (devolves) love - as proposed by Zygmunt Bauman - or make dating more accessible and efficient. This thesis aims to understand and create knowledge of young male experiences on Tinder. This thesis is a case study investigating the group of young men on Tinder with the entrance point of critical theory and the notion of social acceleration. Through semi-structured, phenomenological interviews, the thesis will answer the research question: How does Tinder affect young men's attitude towards romantic relationships and love? The results in this thesis are that interaction on Tinder tends to become uncertain, strategic, gamified, and narcissistic. My empirical findings suggest that Tinder is an app creating experiences of uncertainty and that self-esteem is gained through what is referred to as the libidinal investment of the Other’s desire. The results also indicate that male Tinder users become emotionally numb and self-alienated when implementing gamified and strategic actions on the app. The structure of this thesis will consist of a background with points of theoretical departure and previous research, then I will continue with presenting my research questions followed by chapters on theory, method, and analysis structured in accordance with the three sub-research questions: How can we understand the effects on self-esteem through the use of Tinder? How do young men strategize on Tinder? How do young men feel when using and interacting on Tinder?