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Optimist by Nature, Pessimist by Design

This conversation between Geert Lovink and Nikita Lin reflects upon our inner experiences within the global networked digital cultures. It explores the tactics, aesthetic and political, in response to the breakdowns brought by digital platforms and the possibility of creating new beginnings through persistent engagement in writing and publishing. Since 2004 Lovink is heading the Institute of Network Cultures at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and is Art and Network Cultures Professor of Art and Network Cultures at University of Amsterdam’s Art History Department. The conversation takes as point of departure Lovink’s three recent books: Sad by Design: On Platform Nihilism, Stuck on the Platform: Reclaiming the Internet, and Extinction Internet: Our Inconvenient Truth Moment. Over the past 30 years, Lovink has been experimenting with the networks and the internet in his writing by developing a distinct style that dig into essays, interviews, aphorisms, sloganisms, and memes. This includes critical concepts that he has developed-such as ‘tactical media,’ ‘net criticism,' ‘sad by design,’ and ‘internet extinction’ – that people recognize, find useful and ready to apply to their own activities. For Geert Lovink, the fascinating question with writing is how to capture fast-changing real-time phenomena which means not only documenting but also leaving room for anticipation.

It Happened on Tinder

This volume brings together articles from different parts of the globe that describe, question, test and criticize innovations and recent developments in online dating. Using quantitative as well as qualitative techniques the studies included in the book examine the impact of gender, personality traits, app interface and design, and culture on success and failure in online courtship. Among the issues dealt here are ghosting, sex emoticons, body presentation in the virtual universe, dime dating, religious courtship and more.Amir Hetsroni is a professor in the Department of Media and Visual Arts at Koç University in Turkey. He is the author/editor of four books and nearly 100 journal articles and book chapters. He is also a media celebrity in his home country, Israel, where he takes part in reality shows as a consultant and commentator, and takes an active role in anti-censorship campaigns. He failed to find love in online dating, but did not lose hope.Meriç Tuncez, a PhD candidate in Design, Technology, Society program at Koç University, received his BA in Business Administration from Koç University, and received his M.F.A. in Media and Design from Bilkent University. His research interests span interactions with artificial intelligence and virtual assistants including humanness, mental state, emotion, intention, sociality and morality attributions to artificial intelligence, and online dating. He is also a digital artist and his artworks were included in a recent interdisciplinary exhibition about coincidences called Yaratan Disiplinler: Tesadüfler by Tasarım Atölyesi Kadıköy (TAK) in Istanbul. His first real love was exclusively on the net but later he realized that he was being catfished by that person for the duration of a year.

Afterword: Propositions on the Organizational Form

The quest of organization haunts us. If anarchists were once said to defy authority, nowadays we defy organization. Structures are perceived to hold us back and pin us down with the iron cage of identity. The solidified social limits our freedom with its demand of never-ending “engagement.” How desperate is it to live your life as an insulated rebel without a cause? Instead, we should ask, what is pure organization? Is there a new core that we could define and design? What’s commitment outside of today’s technosocial conventions? Are there bonds that create ties, unhinged from procedure, unfettered by bureaucracy? Is there a form of conspiracy that operates without all the tiresome preparations? Mutual aid and local self-organization come to mind, but what if we’re forced to pursue organization of the unorganizables? Does a self-evident General Will exist that does not need to be discussed and exhaustively questioned? Having arrived at this point, we can clearly see the romantic undertone of the Critique of Organization. What’s a lean revolution, an effortless regime change? Can we presuppose a hive mind that performs like an automaton? Humans, coming together, create the Event, simply because of an inner urge to experience relations without guarantees.

Beyond relaxation: studying and designing for challenges in couples vacations.

Vacations offer a break from daily stressors but at the same time introduce challenges away from home. While the positive aspects of vacationing, especially individual benefits, are well documented, the challenges couples face and their psychological mechanisms and outcomes remain unexplored. This study investigated the effects challenges and challenge resolution might have on shared experiences and on relationship quality. We collected data from 100 romantic couples at major tourist destinations in the Netherlands in Spring 2024. Random intercept regression models showed that novelty is positively associated with positive emotions, passionate love, and feelings of connection with partner; and that challenges would take away some of these benefits. Interestingly, challenges were associated with self-expansion, a major predictor of long-term love and passion, especially when partially resolved. Positive emotions mediated some of these relationships. These findings highlight the importance and value of studying challenges and challenge resolution on vacations for relationship and experience quality.

Self-expansion during couples vacations linked to sexual intimacy and passion post-vacation

Couples vacations and romantic passion and intimacy.

Despite limited empirical support, vacations are marketed as beneficial for romantic partners. Using the self-expansion model as a foundation, we tested how self-expanding (e.g., novel, interesting, challenging) vacation experiences are associated with passion, physical intimacy, and relationship satisfaction. Study 1 (n = 238 partners) found that higher individual self-expanding experiences on vacations predicted higher post-vacation romantic passion and relationship satisfaction for couples traveling with their partners, but not those that did not travel together. Study 2 examined 102 romantic dyads that traveled together and found that higher self-expanding experiences on vacations predicted more post-vacation physical intimacy. Our findings advance self-expansion research and provide evidence for the tourism industry to design and promote self-expanding vacation experiences for couples seeking improved relationships and meaningful vacations.