A Netnography Study About Wapa as a Mobile Dating Application: An Existence Struggle from Turkey

This study examines gender performances on mobile dating applications (MDAs) in the context of queer theory with the help of netnography methodology. The research was conducted with Wapa users from Turkey. Wapa can be defined as a popular, location-based, real-time dating application for lesbians. The research examines the self-presentation narratives from the contents of user accounts and focuses on the user experiences that were obtained via online interviews. Based on the findings, this study contributes to the literature about communication, technology and gender studies by revealing both male and female masculinity in a mobile communication environment. Although MDA technology is considered an opportunity for users to specify their preferred age range, proximity and sexual orientation, the mobile environment is also an area where stereotyping about queer identities is introduced and circulates.