Intimacy and the Use of Mobile Dating Applications: A Study of Chinese International Students’ Intimate Lives in the UK

Abstract

The UK remains one of the most popular destinations for international students, with Chinese students representing one of the largest international student groups in the UK. While existing research has increasingly examined their academic performance and cultural adaptation, their dating and intimate relationships are largely overlooked. Intimacy has a profound impact on these students’ wellbeing, academic performance and even migration trajectories. With the rise of online dating services, mobile dating applications (MDAs) have become a prevalent means for these students to establish social networks and develop romantic relationships in a transnational context. Thus, this journal-format thesis investigates how UK-based Chinese international students engage with MDAs and navigate dating and intimacy in a transnational context. Specifically, this thesis explores the following research questions: 1) Why and how do Chinese international students use MDAs in the UK? 2) How do these students perceive and practise dating, both on MDAs and offline, in the UK? 3) How do their experiences with MDAs and intimate relationships influence their lives in the UK?

The theoretical framework of this thesis draws on Bourdieu’s theory of practice, Green’s sexual field framework, and Gomes’s concept of transience. I conceptualise the dating space in China as a Chinese sexual field and the dating space in the UK as the UK sexual field. I argue that Chinese international students are situated in a transient sexual field, a sub-field within the broader UK sexual field, which captures the transient nature of these students’ migration status and their lived experiences in the UK.

This longitudinal research is based on two rounds of semi-structured interviews conducted with 49 Chinese international students (13 male and 36 female) over a year. To facilitate interviews, I also employed the scroll back method and the walkthrough method during interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis has been used to analyse interview data. The research findings are presented in the form of four journal articles, each addressing a distinct aspect of Chinese international students’ digital dating
experiences in the UK: (1) their intentions for using MDAs, (2) self-presentation on MDAs, (3) racial preferences in digital dating and (4) their perceptions and practices of dating. The findings highlight a range of critical issues, including racial stereotypes and hierarchies, gender inequality in dating, and international students’ negotiation of conflicting dating norms, sexual values, and beauty standards in the host country.

To my knowledge, this research provides the first extensive examination of Chinese international students’ intimate lives in the UK. It makes significant contributions to theory, methodology, empirical understanding, and the practical support of international students within higher education institutions. Theoretically, this study innovatively extends Gomes’s concept of transience by integrating it with Green’s sexual field framework to conceptualise a transient sexual field. This conceptualisation highlights how international students’ transient migration status—characterised by uncertainty, opportunity, and conflict—shapes their transient desires and the revaluation of their sexual capital in the UK. Moreover, the study expands the application of Bourdieusian concepts to the domain of intimate relationships in a transnational context by adding insights into how habitus, capital, and field operate in developing romantic relationships.

Methodologically, this longitudinal research combines semi-structured interviews, scroll back and walkthrough methods, which enable a deeper understanding of participants’ use of MDAs. The integration of scroll back and walkthrough methods encourages participants to share richer, more detailed experiences during interviews, thereby enhancing the depth and quality of the data collected.

Practically, this research offers important implications for higher education institutions seeking to better support international students. Beyond academic performance and English language development, students’ intimate relationships and the challenges they face deserve greater attention, as these experiences significantly impact their wellbeing.
It is essential to provide tailored resources and culturally sensitive programming that address international students’ needs in navigating intimate and sexual relationships. This includes organising activities and workshops—particularly for students from non- Western backgrounds—on topics such as dating norms, sexual consent, and sexual health. In addition, there is an urge for institutions to offer access to culturally competent counsellors who are familiar with the values, norms, and challenges faced by international students. These services could be available in multiple languages rather than exclusively in English, ensuring that students can seek help effectively.

This study makes vital contributions to international education, international student mobility, migration studies, and the sociology of intimacy by centering the dating experiences of Chinese international students in the UK. It highlights how the intersection of race, gender, and migration status, mediated through digital dating platforms, shapes their intimate relationships within a transnational context. In doing so, it deepens our understanding of the intimate lives of international students, an overlooked aspect that significantly impacts their wellbeing.