Leveling up: How users perceive, understand, and experience gamified elements in dating apps and how it shapes their dating scripts

Abstract

Dating apps employ gamified structures (e.g., swipes, likes, matches) that reshape dating scripts by blending game-like elements into social interactions. This study explores users’ conceptualization of gamification, its impact on experiences, and dating scripts. Thirty-one semi-structured interviews (17 cisgender women, 14 cisgender men) were conducted in Portugal. Participants were current and former users with different sexual orientations and a diverse age range (18–34 years old), and predominantly Portuguese. The thematic analysis presented how users likened their dating app interactions to games, identifying specific gamified features, and describing their adaptation and engagement in strategic practices to enhance appeal. Despite the uniform platform system and rules, traditional gender scripts endure and dictate a binary dynamic where men are seen as initiators and women as selectors. The findings reveal tensions between gamification’s homogenizing effect and enduring socio-cultural scripts, illustrating how platform design affordances and social norms structure dating experiences.