Quarterly Journal of Social Development (Previously Human Development)

Quarterly Journal of Social Development (Previously Human Development)

Analysis of the Representation of Women's Gender Identity in Anonymous Dating Programs on YouTube (A Case Study of Blind Date Programs)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
davood Safa 1
Zamira Hussaini 2
Hosna Nabizadeh 3
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Al-Mustafa Al-Alamiyah University, Qom, Iran
2 PhD Student in Quran and Psychology, Quran and Hadith, Al-Mustafa Al-Alamiyah University, Qom, Iran
3 MA Student in Educational Psychology, Educational Sciences, Al-Mustafa Al-Alamiyah University, Qom, Iran
10.22055/qjsd.2026.48720.3020
Abstract
The phenomenon of "blind dating" in Persian-language YouTube, as an emerging form of social interaction, presents new representations of women's identities. This study aims to analyze the representation of women's gender identity in blind dating programs on YouTube, using John Fiske's semiotic approach and drawing on the theoretical foundations of Stuart Hall's representation theory, Stevenson’s media theory, and Giddens' concept of identity. The research follows a qualitative methodology, employing semiotic analysis at three levels: social, technical, and ideological codes. The study sample was selected through purposive sampling and includes three highly viewed videos: "Balloon Date" with 1,551,976 views, "Attraction-Based Date" with 671,462 views, and "Red Flag Date" with 720,416 views on YouTube. The findings reveal a clear contradiction in the representation of women's identities in these programs. On one hand, women are portrayed as independent and active agents; on the other, they are subjected to a consumerist and instrumental perspective. These representations contribute to the normalization of unethical behaviors, the reduction of women's identities to objects of evaluation and judgment, and the promotion of a commodified and consumerist view of human relationships. This dual representation manifests in elements such as objectification, materialism, superficiality, norm-breaking, and the normalization of betrayal. Ultimately, it can be argued that these programs reproduce a contradictory discourse in which elements of modernity (independence, individualism) are intertwined with traditional elements (control, objectification), reflecting the transitional state of contemporary society and the identity challenges faced by women in this period.
Keywords
Representation of Identity
Anonymous Dating
Women's Gender Identity
Youtube
John Fiske's Semiotics
Subjects
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Quarterly Journal of Social Development (Previously Human Development)
Volume 20, Issue 1 - Serial Number 77
Vol. 20, No. 1, Autumn 2025
Summer 2025
Pages 257-286