The effects of self-monitoring and appropriated racial oppression on online dating self-presentation for multiracial individuals

Based on prior research, inferences can be made regarding individuals with non-achieved ethnic identity statuses, as well as individuals experiencing high levels of appropriated racial oppression, engaging in higher self-monitoring of aspects of their ethnic identities. Links have also been demonstrated between online dating and engagement in self-monitoring. The purpose of this study was to examine a model for how individuals present themselves on ethnicityspecific and non-ethnicity-specific online dating platforms and how this self-presentation is impacted by one’s ethnic identity, self-monitoring, and appropriated racial oppression. Three hundred and nineteen participants were surveyed and data were analyzed using path analysis. The models tested were found to be poor fits for the data; however, ethnic identity was found to be positively related to self-monitoring as well as ethnicity-specific and non-ethnicity-specific platform self-presentation. Further, ethnic identity was negatively related to appropriated racial oppression. Ethnicity-specific platform self-presentation was negatively related to appropriated racial oppression and positively related to non-ethnicity-specific platform self-presentation and self-monitoring. Self-monitoring in online dating was found to be positively related to appropriated racial oppression. Implications for theory, practice, and research are discussed.