We are extremely pleased to announce that Julia Rozanova’s submission, with co-investigator Laura Hurde Clark from the School of Human Kinetics, of “Digital Dating: Online Romance and Sexuality in Later Life” was successful in the latest round of Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council’s (SSHRC) standard research grant program. Julia is the newest addition to our faculty at OS&OT and this marks her first Tri-Council funding success as a new investigator.
This project is not only very relevant in our social networking dominated society, but also important as having romantic relationships is one of our most fundamental human needs throughout the life span. Contrary to the stereotypes that older adults are asexual, disinterested in romantic relationships, and baffled by new technologies, a growing body of research indicates that online dating is an activity enjoyed and valued by individuals of all ages.
Julia aims to address the following research questions:
1. How is online dating in later life portrayed by Canadian newspapers and magazines and what stereotypes and cultural meanings underlie these portrayals?
2. What meanings underlie online dating profiles of older adults who differ by gender, age, socioeconomic status, sexuality, and ethno-cultural background?
3. Why and how do older persons who differ by gender, age, socio-economic status, sexuality, and ethno-cultural background engage with online dating? What are the gendered and sexualized tensions and continuities between older adults’ embodied experiences of online dating, their online dating profiles, and media stereotypes about later life romance, sexuality, the ideal male/female body, and age-appropriate social roles?
Congratulations Julia on your achievement – we are quite sure this is only the beginning of a career filled with granting successes!
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