Between control and connection: The clash of dating apps and cultural norms in Indonesia

The digital change transforming appealing packaging into a new communication medium linked with the internet has heralded a new era in relationships and intimacy. Dating apps and hook-ups result from technology's influence on social factors, including interpersonal concerns, and its ability to mediate various users' everyday activities. This study analyzed the main criteria and indicators used to understand the phenomenon of social change and interaction dynamics through the dating apps in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Researchers used combined quantitative and qualitative approaches to conduct in-depth investigations into interaction and gender dynamics in Indonesian dating culture via dating apps. Data were collected using in-depth interviews and observations and distributing 220 questionnaires to research respondents. Of the responses received, 202 or 91.82% were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique using the SmartPLS application. The four exogenous variables used are privacy, turbulence, control, and norms, each measured using predetermined indicators. The research results show a significant correlation between privacy, turbulence, control, through norms, and the use of dating apps. In contrast, calculating the direct path for only one exogenous variable has a significant influence. This is an interesting finding because the dominant use of dating apps continues to limit and control itself by the social, cultural, environmental, and religious norms it adheres to. This research expands the understanding of individual behavior in meeting needs and finding a partner even through digital media, which may be useful as a reference for social observers, community communication, and psychology for general use as a basis for developing further research. The study highlights the importance of addressing sociocultural and religious norms in dating app usage, emphasizing the need for enhanced personal communication design, privacy security, self-control, and individual shock to navigate societal norms.