Content area
The study of social role expectations for men and women has been instrumental in a better understanding of intersex dynamics. Although much research has focused on behavioral similarities and differences in formal contexts, qualitative research that helps us to understand gendered differences in informal contexts remains underappreciated. In particular, the area of romance presents a fruitful social context in which to comparatively study gendered manifestations of strategic self-presentation. Using the first episodes of the first seasons of the Bachelor and Bachelorette South Africa reality television franchise, this study compares 28 self-presentation tactics used by 17 male and 24 female contestants. Textual analysis suggests minor similarities in how selfpresentation is used by men compared to women and stark differences that support social role theory's supposition of different behavioral expectations for the two genders. That is, men seem to use more self-presentation tactics and with greater intensity compared to women to successfully make a good first impression. The men's self-presentation efforts conform to social role expectations for men in romantic contexts.
The study of social role expectations for men and women has been instrumental in a better understanding of intersex dynamics. Although much research has focused on behavioral similarities and differences in formal contexts, qualitative research that helps us to understand gendered differences in informal contexts remains underappreciated. In particular, the area of romance presents a fruitful social context in which to comparatively study gendered manifestations of strategic self-presentation. Using the first episodes of the first seasons of the Bachelor and Bachelorette South Africa reality television franchise, this study compares 28 self-presentation tactics used by 17 male and 24 female contestants. Textual analysis suggests minor similarities in how selfpresentation is used by men compared to women and stark differences that support social role theory's supposition of different behavioral expectations for the two genders. That is, men seem to use more self-presentation tactics and with greater intensity compared to women to successfully make a good first impression. The men's self-presentation efforts conform to social role expectations for men in romantic contexts.
Keywords: impression management, gender, reality television, dating, love, textual analysis
Introduction
Reality television (RTV) has arguably transformed the television landscape since its impressive rise in the early 2000s (Deller, 2020). From production to consumption, RTV challenges the conventional norms of television. Its limited scripting, reliance on nonprofessional actors as participants, as well as relative ease in location means that RTV can be produced with a comparatively modest budget while being in the position to potentially make huge returns (Essany, 2013). Quick production times also translate to content that can be produced consistently without many of the hurdles associated with traditional television programming.
Although much can be said about production, this study finds its context within the rising importance of participation in RTV programs for ordinary citizens who want to enjoy the benefits of being in the media (Deery, 2015). Indeed, the increased levels of uncertainty brought about by modernity seem to motivate ordinary citizens to gravitate toward participating in RTV to find a semblance of existential anchoring (Bauman, 2010). In other words, the volatility and unpredictability exacerbated by modem life led to a sense of loss of agency and a desire to seek other means to restore this agency. Indeed, the participants in the shows themselves exercise a great amount of agency as they can alter the shows through their words and actions, albeit in a limited, scripted sense (Deery, 2015).
Even though RTV?"s rise to power has inevitably drawn the interest of many scholars from various disciplines (Deller, 2016; Ouellette, 2014; Tavernaro-Haidarian, 2020; Vertoont, 2017), there remains much to be investigated in terms of the use of self-presentation by RTV participants on screen to achieve desired goals on a given show. This careful, goal-oriented management of how the self, others, and objects are perceived is known collectively as impression management (Goffman, 1959; Metts & Grohskopf, 2004; Schlenker & Pontari, 2000).
Impression management (IM) on RTV has mainly focused on the presentation of emotions, such as shame, within a mediated context (Aslama & Pantti, 2006). Due to the quest both for authenticity and the rise of a confessional culture on screen, participants in such shows are often the focal point of how impressions in emotionally laden contexts are managed. For example, shows in which parents are helped in dealing with child-rearing challenges often mean that the social roles of participants in these shows are under sharp scrutiny for the entire world to see. Although much could be said about the unethical treatment of participants through misrepresentation, participants seem to move beyond the temporal benefits of participating to a transcendent focus on improving self-identity. There is then a keen awareness among participants in RTV shows that the presentation of the self needs to be managed in particular ways (Aslama & Pantti, 2006; Gordon, 2011).
Very little research has been conducted on how the dynamic of attempting to make a good impression may manifest itself in the context of reality dating shows (Eibel, 2014). Romance is arguably the context in which interlocutors have the most at stake in terms of motivations for making a good impression on their potential romantic interest (Sagita & Irwansyah, 2021; Ward, 2016). Furthermore, since impression management in these contexts is linked to attempts to make a good impression on the opposite sex, gendered roles are enacted in the self-presentation process. This means that both men and women in dating shows are called upon to manage their impressions as a potentially good mate in particular ways that may implicate their gendered identities.
Using the Bachelor South Africa (SA; Clark, 2019) and Bachelorette SA franchises as case studies, this study examines gendered differences in first impressions that participants seek to make when meeting the bachelor and bachelorette for the first time. Although gender can be conceptualized as a spectrum, I use the show's normative framing of gender as a binary. The literature reviewed in the next section also follows this logic for consistency with the show's context. This is not to suggest that this is the only way to conceptualize gender. Ultimately, this research has the potential to enhance our understanding of how impressions can be fruitfully managed in a gendered romantic setting, however limited. Consequently, this will move us away from a focus on IM only within a formal context and to better understand and improve on IM within informal intersex contexts. A better appreciation of intersex dynamics emerges that is not heavily reliant on self-reported quantitative data.
The paper investigates the following research questions:
RQ1: Which impression management tactics, frequency, and intensity are used by women in the Bachelor?
RQ2: Which impression management tactics, frequency, and intensity are used by men in the Bachelorette?
RQ3: What are the similarities and differences to how impression management tactics, frequency, and intensity are used by women in the Bachelor in contrast to men in the Bachelorette?
Literature Review
Self-Presentation and Gender
Social role theory dictates that different genders will conform to different gendered role expectations in their self-presentation efforts. These role expectations work in tandem with the biological make-up of men and women in influencing what is appropriate behaviour for each gender (Eagly & Wood, 2013). For instance, because men have greater upper body strength than women, they are expected to take on more physically demanding and often dangerous forms of labour. These assumptions are then reinforced through socialization processes in which the social roles are learned. Thus, there is a cyclical relationship between biological assumptions about men and women, as well as the social role expectations being reinforced through socialization or acculturation.
Accordingly, social role theory finds support in many social behaviours in which men and women engage. This is also true in the context of impression management, where men and women tend to gravitate toward expectations in how they present themselves for their respective gender. For instance, because there is an expectation for men to be more agentic, self-promotion strategies in self-presentation are usually associated with masculine behaviour. Women would then avoid using self-promotion strategies as an impression management tool in whatever context they find themselves. The backlash effect (Rudman, 1998; Rudman & Glick, 1999) suggests that deviation from these social roles' expectations may lead to a social or economic backlash against the violator. Therefore, each gender might also have a vested interest in participating in social role expectations for impression management to avoid a backlash. Of course, this should in no way suggest an inauthenticity in self-presentations regardless of the context.
Evidence of gendered differences in self-presentational efforts and outcomes has already been provided in abundance through organizational research (Bolino et al., 2016; Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007). This research suggests that women are less likely to use selfpresentation for advancing their career goals and are less likely to use assertive styles of impression management than men. When women do use self-promotional impression management to advance their careers, they may be viewed in a negative manner for using selfpresentation, which is typically associated with men. The sanctions against women who use self-presentation identical to men may further serve to reinforce the role expectations of men and women in terms of their impression management expectations in formal social interactions. Although much of this research is clearly within the context of formal social interaction (Bolino et al., 2016), gendered differences in informal social interactions also persist, where gender is defined in the normative sense (Ward, 2016).
Men and women also tend to utilize different levels of impression management, with differing levels of effectiveness (Durbin, 1994; Kacmar & Carlson, 1999). Men tend to use self-presentation more frequently and more assertively than women. While women, on the other hand, tend to rely on perceived job-oriented competence to advance in organizational settings. Moreover, men tend to use impression management to stand out from others and to acquire instrumental rewards, whereas women are more likely to use impression management to achieve faimess and to balance the needs of all involved (Tannen, 1994). The differences in impression management between men and women are not only limited to frequency and extent but also include types of tactics or strategies used to achieve the desired impression management outcomes.
Self-Presentation Tactics and Gender
Researchers have identified many tactics that communicators use to achieve their desired impression management goals (see for instance, Jones & Pittman, 1982; Leary, 2019). These are not only restricted to self-presentation but also to impressions made on behalf of significant others (Schlenker & Britt, 1999, 2001). Guadagno and Cialdini (2007) enumerate 28 different tactics that can be used in self-presentation in informal social interactions. These tactics are broken down into five different categories: the direct acquisitive, the indirect acquisitive, the direct protective, the indirect protective, and negative impression management tactics (Tables 1 through 5).
This Study
This study aims to fill the gap in the literature on how gender influences selfpresentation in initial romantic encounters. Hitherto, self-presentation has been mainly studied in formal settings, and its informal application has only through self-reported surveys. Using real world data from the reality dating franchise of The Bachelor and Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019), I unravel how gender plays out in making a good first impression on a love interest in the show. Through analysing the introductions of each contestant to the season's bachelor or bachelorette, we can understand more fully the communicative processes involved in making a good first impression using a variety of the five different strategies mentioned above (Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007).
The current study builds from my own interest toward a better understanding of the communicative process involved in successful initial romantic encounters. Especially poignant in my focus are overlooked variables in the literature, including age, physical attraction, as well as gender. My interest in the current paper on gender and romantic initiation is written from my reflexive standpoint as a South African black male. I have seen the pervasive role that gender can play in the context of romance due to social role expectations. These gendered roles often diverge due to an emphasis on difference rather than similarity. I believe that research like this one will unravel some of the taken-for-granted assumptions about the role of gender in romantic relationship initiation, specifically concerning self-presentation. In conducting research in this area, I also believe that the study of communicative processes in romantic initiation and maintenance will develop into its field of study. My contribution to developing this area of study is both theoretical as well as methodological. These methods, for instance are more qualitative and use observation of real-world interactions. Therefore, they move away from the dominant reliance on quantitative self-reported data as well as experimental designs. This paper forms part of the development of this corpus of research that can stand.
Methods
I adopted a systematic qualitative approach to the data to elicit a deep understanding of gendered relations within the culture of courtship and mating as depicted on reality television. The nature of the overall approach of the study is that of an interpretive exploratory design. This approach is typical when not much is known about the topic (Berg, 2004; Grey, 2004, p. 32). Also, it is a good fit because this study aims to add to the body of knowledge by exploring new insights into the area of gendered negotiations of impression management in initial romantic encounters.
An interpretive design has the following advantages for the data used in this study of the Bachelor and Bachelorette SA (Clark, 2019) franchises: interpretive designs require a close reading of relatively small amounts of textual matter; data involve the re-articulation (interpretation) of given texts into new (analytical, deconstructive, emancipatory, or critical) narratives that are accepted within particular scholarly communities that are sometimes opposed to positivist traditions of inquiry and; the researcher acknowledges working within hermeneutic circles in which their own socially or culturally conditioned understandings constitutively participate (Babbie & Mouton, 2001).
Data were collected by screen recording and saving the first two episodes of season one of the Bachelor and Bachelorette SA (Clark, 2019) to elicit rich, thick interpretive descriptions. The formats of both these shows are, of course, identical with the exception being the swapping of genders for each franchise.
I adopted textual analysis as a sense-making tool for the data, as it can also be applied to not just verbal data but "images, movies, and other products of culture and communications" (Kuckartz, 2014, p. 69), making it well suited to answer the research questions. Rayner et al. (2004, p. 9) define textual analysis as "a process by which we can both reveal the inner workings of a text and identify its significance in terms of the wider social and cultural issues to which it relates". This process does not mean one interpretation should be seen as the only interpretation of the text. This is one of the earlier criticisms of textual analysis (Creeber, 2006) that I hope to overcome by not proposing that the analysis of the gendered impression management on the Bachelor and Bachelorette is the most accurate interpretation.
Because there is already a taxonomy of impression management tactics and behaviors in literature, my approach was to attempt to extract or deduce these from the texts through thematic text analysis. This type of text analysis "focuses on identifying, systematizing, and analysing topics and sub-topics and how they are related" (Kuckartz, 2014, p. 88). I adopted the following general analytical sequence in my textual analysis: initial work with the text, memo writing, developing case summaries and lastly, creating a thematic matrix for comparison as well as development of impression management themes (Kuckartz, 2014).
The initial work involved watching each episode several times to map out the structure and format of the show, highlighting important sections and keywords considering the aims of the study, and note concepts used by the contestants. This initial work included not only what was said verbally but also how it was said through non-verbal communication consistent with the visual application of thematic analysis (Kuckartz, 2014). For the non-verbal aspects, I carefully noted the use of paralinguistics (tone, pitch, and cadence), the use of space, touch, facial expression, and body language as used by each contestant during the date. I then incorporated these into the analysis of the verbal communication used. The initial work led on to the writing of memos to begin to make connections among these concepts and the use of verbal and non-verbal communication in the Bachelor and Bachelorette franchises. I then developed a table in which I traced the five types of self-presentation (Guadagno € Cialdini, 2007) used by each contestant in the Bachelor and Bachelorette when introducing themselves for the first time to the season"s bachelor and bachelorette.
The table consisted of a summary deduced from each of the five self-presentation dimensions for the contestants. The case summaries were combined for the Bachelor episode to create a thematic matrix to draw a summary of how the females used self-presentation when introducing themselves to the season's bachelor. The same matrix was developed for the Bachelorette to draw a summary of how males used self-presentation when introducing themselves to the season's bachelorette for the first time. In the final stage, I combined the matrix summaries for the Bachelor and Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019) to develop a gendered comparative analysis of self-presentation tactics in both series. The table recorded not only the frequency that each tactic was used, but also the intensity through the types of nouns and verbs used.
Contextualizing the Bachelor and Bachelorette SA franchise
The overall format of both the Bachelor and the Bachelorette is similar, as is the symbology and the language used. The shows present themselves as the epitome of an intervention meant to help an eligible bachelor or bachelorette to finally find love amid the traps of modern vocational success. In the first episode of The Bachelor, we are introduced to Lee Thompson and his story of how he came to the epiphany of the need for love (Clark, 2019). This is the same in the introduction of Qiniso van Damme in the Bachelorette, who lost out on love in the second season of The Bachelor but now has a second chance. The viewers are given a sneak preview of what is to come for each season. In this highlight reel, the highs and the lows are teased at amid the opulent settings and romance. Each contestant then walks out of the limo to introduce themselves to the Bachelor or Bachelorette and attempts to carve out a unique self-presentation. Each contestant knows ahead of time that there is a first impression rose that will be handed out at the end of the cocktail introductory party to the one who made the best impression on the Bachelor or Bachelorette.
Findings
Impression Management Tactics, Frequency, and Intensity Used by Women in the Bachelor
In season one of the Bachelor South Africa (Clark, 2019), we are introduced to 24 women competing for Lee Thomson's heart, the season's bachelor. The words "competition" and "time with" are two of the repeated words in the first episode. The other keyword is "good impression," and its use suggests that the women know that some kind of self-presentation is indeed expected of them and may be what sets them apart from the other women. For example, Tiegrien-Kelly said that "T have never had to compete with 24 other women for a man before." Even though there is a level of impression management that the women must engage in with each other, the focal point of the first episode is how they make a good first impression on Lee, especially as they walk out of the limo to introduce themselves for the first time to him.
The main tactics used by participants fell under acquisitive direct strategies and primarily consisted of the use of charm in the form of smiling or the use of verbal ingratiation. Only seven of the 24 women used a gift as a form of ingratiation. There was a heavy reliance on the use of charm through smiling, compliments, or some form of ingratiation through physical touch by the ladies. Smiling and touch are less intense forms of charm than, for instance, compliments. This means even the use of charm was not intense or aggressive. The compliments that the women made were very direct:
America: It's nice to see the universe has taken its time with you.
Taryn: It's a fire extinguisher; coz you're such a flame.
Acquisitive indirect strategies were all based on altering physical appearance, as the women all dressed for the occasion in different evening dresses. This was accompanied by using make-up and some form of hairstyle. Only Kelly used association as an indirect acquisitive tactic by mentioning that she had done a pineapple photoshoot like that of Lee, as they both modeled. Edith and Jacqueline used a protective direct impression management tactic through a reported self-handicap by mentioning that they were nervous while introducing themselves to Lee:
Edith: Im so excited to see you...I do have a few nerves.
Jaqueline: Oh my God, I'm so nervous.
In the end, the woman who was judged by Lee to have made the best impression was Michelle R, who received the first impression rose at the end of the cocktail party. She relied heavily on her charm and appearance by wearing an elegant yellow ballroom gown. For example, she used charm by offering Lee a ballroom dancing tutorial during their first introduction. She brought a sense of chivalry to how she presented herself:
Michelle R.: Greetings, Mr. Thomson. It's such an honour to meet you.
Her reliance on just the two tactics of charm and physical appearance in making a good first impression suggests that a combination of several different impression management strategies was indeed not a critical factor for the women to make a good impression on Lee:
Lee: Quite elegant and classy, which is what I like in a woman.
From the five types of impression management tactics, negative and protective indirect impression management tactics were not used at all by the women, while direct acquisitive, indirect acquisitive, as well as direct protective strategies were used 1n different combinations. Therefore, the main combinations of tactics used were direct and indirect acquisitive strategies and with very little intensity and variation within those categories themselves.
Impression Management Tactics, Frequency, and Intensity Used by Men in the Bachelorette
In the first season of the Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019), we are introduced to 17 men set on winning over Qiniso van Damme's heart. The first episode sets the tone for an all-out competition amongst the men. Here, the tone is set through the audience being introduced to both the main love interest for the season as well as the background of all the contestants attempting to make a good impression. The focus of the first episode, then, is how the men attempt to make a good first impression on Qiniso, especially in their first introduction as they walk out of the limo to meet her for the very first time. Keywords that emerged in this episode included "competition," "my chance," and "my shot." For example, during the cocktail party, Peter (27) said, "I'm here for myself, to find my shot at love, I am not here for anybody else." These keywords point to the level of agency that the contestants perceived in shaping their impression management efforts.
The men relied heavily on the use of direct acquisitive strategies for impression management. For instance, one contestant brought a potted plant as a gift, which is what Qiniso likes, and that she presented as a gift when she was a contestant in season 2 of the Bachelor South Africa (Clark, 2019). The gift thus worked as a form of ingratiation as well as positive association.
The second most used strategy was indirect acquisitive strategies in the form of dressing well for the occasion and some sort of positive association with what Qiniso likes. Overall, the men used tactics from the different dimensions. This paid off for Ruan, who used three out of the fivet dimensions. He also used at least one tactic from each dimension which included acquisitive strategies of charm, gifts, and dressing well. He also used the protective strategy of self-handicapping, by mentioning to Qiniso that he is nervous and and such might mix up his words. . Ruan eventually received the first impression from Qiniso. The use of different tactics and dimensions within the impression management toolkit seemed to be the expectation and indeed the norm in the first episode of the Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019).
The third type of impression management strategy used was direct protective tactics in the form of self-handicap. One contestant, Ruan, used this successfully when he came dressed as Edward Snow, a prominent character in the TV series Game of Thrones] He claimed the first thing strangers always comment on is his resemblance to the character and did not want this to get in the way of Qiniso getting to know the "real" him. Only one other contestant used direct protective strategies in the form of a self-reported handicap by declaring his emotional state:
Henk: ...can you feel this, my heart is pounding [...] Im nervous.
This form of protective strategy enables the communicator to set up obstacles that make it difficult to accomplish a task. In this instance, confessing his emotional state would help Henk to inform Qiniso that the obstacle to making a good first impression is the fact that he is feeling nervous.
Only one contestant used a negative direct impression management tactic in the form of intimidation. Negative direct strategies entail either the use of intimidation or supplication. In this instance, intimidation was used, which involved using threats/warnings to gain compliance. This happened when Lunga told Qiniso that she should keep quiet and let him finish while he was introducing himself through traditional Xhosa praise singing:
Lunga: Akho thule kancinci ndizimalele. (Keep silent for a bit while I listen to myself).
Being told to keep quiet was not well received by Qiniso, and it led to a negative first impression of the contestant:
Qiniso: I did not like the fact that he told me to be quiet, [...] it's something I would like to address with him.
Praise singing within the Xhosa culture is popularly done in a context where an important member of society is being introduced in public through a poet "singing" (reciting) their praises about the dignitary. Although the praise itself was a form of association and charm, it did not end well for Lunga. Although there were no eliminations in the first episode, Qiniso commented to the producers that Lunga made the worst first impression. Of the five types of IM dimensions, the men did not utilize the indirect protective tactics in their first introductions to Qiniso.
Similarities and Differences in Impression Management Tactics, Frequency, and Intensity by Women in the Bachelor in Contrast to Men in the Bachelorette
The preceding sections have detailed how men used impression management tactics in the Bachelorette and how women used impression management in the Bachelor when introducing themselves for the first time to the season's bachelor and bachelorette. In this section, I will compare how the two cohorts used the five impression management tactics with respect to frequency and intensity.
Concerning the impression management tactics not used, neither men nor women did not utilized indirect protective impression management strategies. Recall that these tactics mainly involve a dissociation between objects or people that are perceived negatively. Both men and women then avoided negatively mentioning associated others in their first introductions to their potential love interests in both the Bachelor and Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019). This means that the focus was entirely on highlighting the positive aspects of the individual without denigrating others.
The other tactic that was largely avoided by both the male and female contestants of the shows was the use of negative direct impression management, consisting of threats or intimidation. Only one male contestant used this tactic while introducing himself to Qiniso in The Bachelorette (Clark, 2019). The result of the use of negative impression management was the formation of a bad first impression for the contestant. Although negative direct impression management tactics may have their use, the contestants seem to have avoided their use in this context.
Although similar tactics were used in the first episodes by both men in the Bachelorette and women in the Bachelor to make a good impression, they were used with different intensity and frequency. Both men and women relied on the use of direct acquisitive, indirect acquisitive, and, to a lesser extent, direct protective impression management tactics when introducing themselves for the first time to Lee in the Bachelor and Qiniso in the Bachelorette (Clark, 2019). Direct acquisitive tactics for men included more variations in the use of charm and ingratiation, such as compliments, gifts, smiling, humor, and touching. For the women, the acquisitive tactics used were mainly charm in the form of smiling:
Michelle D.: The way through your heart tonight is a rose.
Therefore, the women used acquisitive strategies with less intensity and frequency than the men.
Acquisitive indirect strategies for both men and women consisted of altering their appearance through dressing for the occasion. However, in addition to changing the appearance, the men also used positive associations to make a good first impression on Qiniso. This is because some of the gifts they brought and activities, they did during the introduction allowed for associations to be made with things that Qiniso already liked.
The last strategy used was direct protective tactics in the form of a self-confessed handicap. One of the men and two women confessed that they were either nervous about or had some handicap that could make the introduction difficult. This was found to be endearing by both Lee and Qiniso. This, in addition to the other tactics, in fact worked in favor of Ruan, who won the first impression rose in the Bachelorette.
Discussion
Overall, the data suggest a difference in how similar tactics were implemented by men compared to women. Therefore, we see that the men used the different impression management tactics in greater combinations, intensity, and frequency than the women. In other words, the men were more invasive and aggressive in their use of impression management tactics than were the women. The women mainly relied on their appearances and charm to win over Lee, while the men attempted to use the most available resources considering the constraints of both time and context they were placed in. Both uses of the tactics worked for each gender, and neither is worse than the other.
Regarding impression management tactics used by female contestants in the Bachelor South Africa (Clark, 2019), both direct and indirect acquisitive strategies were most often used when introducing themselves to Lee Thompson for the first time in episode one. These tactics included the use of charm through smiling and changing physical appearance. Only two female participants used direct protective strategies in the form of reported self-handicap. Although there is a vast array of direct and indirect acquisitive strategies, such as favor doing, flattery, positive association, and opinion conformity, the females only used one tactic from each dimension. The women also tended to be less intense in their self-presentation efforts and even exhibited disinterest, with one contestant even commenting "he must do a bit of the chasing." In other words, the females opted for a minimalistic approach in terms of how many tactics they used as well as intensity (Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007).
This "softer" approach to the use of self-presentation strategies seems to align with research on how females use impression management in other social contexts. Women in organizations, for instance, tend to downplay a focus on their abilities and competence with the hope that their qualities will become more apparent to their managers (Kacmar & Carlson, 1999). This approach often means that women get overlooked for promotion within organizations due to a lack of self-promotion. Within the Bachelor South Africa, the use of fewer self-presentation tactics did not seem to work against the female contestants. Social role theory can help to explain why this could be the case (Eagly & Wood, 2012; Eagly & Wood, 2013). That is, because women are often expected to be more reserved in romantic social contexts, there could be an attempt to compensate for this social convention by not penalizing them for their social conformity (Rudman, 1998; Rudman & Glick, 1999).
Concerning impression management tactics used by males when introducing themselves to Qiniso van Damme in the Bachelorette South Africa's first episode, both direct and indirect acquisitive strategies dominated. Only two male contestants used direct protective strategies, and only one used negative impression management strategies in the form of a warning/threat. Within the direct and indirect acquisitive strategies, the males used charm, humor, opinion conformity, ingratiation, changing physical appearances, as well as positive association. Although more tactics were available to the men, they seem to gravitate to these six. Almost all the men brought a gift and complimented Qiniso in some way; this is not particularly surprising given the overriding norm of associating male romance with the buying of flowers and showing a potential female love interest with compliments. The data suggests that the males used the IM strategies with more variety and intensity (Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007).
These results support much of the research on how men use IM in other social contexts, particularly in organizations (Bolino et al., 2016). Males tend to use more self-promotion strategies and highlight their positive qualities in organizations and get rewarded through promotions and pay increases as a result. In the context of the Bachelorette South Africa (Clark, 2019), the varied and intense use of IM strategies seemed to be rewarded, as Ruan, a contestant who also used reported self-handicap, made the best first impression on Qiniso. Once more, we see that social norms were conformed to in the show in terms of the expectation of how men should use IM (Eagly & Wood, 2012; Eagly & Wood, 2013). Males are generally expected to pursue more and make more effort when trying to make a good impression on a potential female love interest (Eibel, 2014).
Regarding a comparison between how females in the Bachelor and males in the Bachelorette used the five impression management dimensions, the data points to surprising differences but expected similarities. Within the direct acquisitive strategies, flattery, charm, ingratiation, and option conformity were used more by men than women. This goes against the expected observations in the literature that either associate these tactics with women or show mixed results. The use of association more by men and the equal use of changing physical appearance by both men and women is in line with what is reported in the literature on the use of indirect acquisitive impression management tactics (Deery, 2015; Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007; Metts & Grohskopt, 2004). Other indirect acquisitive strategies were not used, and this could be the result of the contestants only having a moment to introduce themselves to the Bachelor and the Bachelorette.
The data seems to support the assertion in the literature that IM is used less to familiarize others than with strangers (Shepperd & Arkin, 1991). This may be because each contestant only has a brief time to spend with the bachelor and the bachelorette on each season, and they therefore need to make the most of these moments to create a good lasting impression. This translates to a series of brief moments that slowly accumulate to a level of familiarity. In the first encounters through the introduction, more effort is usually made by the contestants to stand out. This was unsurprisingly done more by the men than the women. The women who did not stand out at all were eliminated on the first night by the bachelor Lee Thomson.
The use of a self-reported handicap as a direct protective strategy by both men and women in the Bachelor and the Bachelorette presents some novel insights that are largely missing in the literature (see Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007). The data suggests the equal use of self-reported handicap, as two females and two males used this strategy. None of the females used apologies, hedging, and excuses despite the literature showing that women tend to favor the use of these tactics for protecting their self-presentation (Durbin, 1994; Rudman, 1998). Because self-reported handicap was the only strategy used within this dimension, it may suggest avoiding using protective strategies and taking more risks in shaping a good selfpresentation through acquisitive strategies. What makes acquisitive strategies riskier is that one's face is more exposed to loss, and the potential for rejection is higher (Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007; Leary, 2019). The competitive nature of the shows may also help to account for more risk-taking in the self-presentation by both the men and the women in the franchise (Essany, 2013).
Although indirect protective strategies were not used at all, one male contestant did utilize a negative impression management strategy by coercing Qiniso to keep silent while he finished his introduction. The literature indeed points to men being more prone to utilize intimidation as an impression management strategy (Guadagno & Cialdini, 2007). Even though supplication as an impression management tactic is more associated with females, none of the women used it during their introductions (Schlenker & Pontari, 2000). The general avoidance of negative self-presentation tactics can be due to the romantic social context of the show, which promotes a more ingratiating atmosphere for the participants. All in all, the similarities in the types of tactics used by males in the Bachelorette and females in the Bachelor should not obscure how these tactics were used differently in terms of frequency and intensity.
A few limitations that set the tone for future studies in analyzing self-presentations on RTV are worth noting before concluding the paper. Due to the newness of the Bachelor and Bachelorette franchises in South Africa (Clark, 2019), I could only compare the first season of each franchise. A much more comprehensive assessment as well as generalizability in the findings on self-presentation patterns dating shows akin to the franchises sampled in this paper, could be achieved through a study of more seasons. Added to this limitation was the fact that I only looked at self-presentation during the introductory segment, where the contestants meet the bachelor and bachelorette for the first time. It would be useful to study the changes in self- presentation by the contestants on such shows by sampling more episodes in the lifespan of the specific season; however, the analysis of these initial encounters with as much depth as possible to elicit better understandings of first impression formation.
Despite these minor limitations, the study has presented data that point to key differences in how men and women use self-presentation tactics to make a good first impression on a love interest within a social setting. Men seem to use more impression management strategy variations than women, and surprisingly, even those strategies that are typically associated with women. While women use fewer variations and intensity of impression management tactics, this does not seem to work against them, owing to their conformity to social role expectations for women in romantic settings. The primacy of social role theory then seems to find support through the data insofar as men and women exhibit important different levels of application in the use of IM tactics when attempting to make a good impression on a love interest. Although there are overlaps in the types of tactics used and success levels, they are used with differing intensity and variations by the two genders and rewarded according to the conformity of each to the social role expectations.
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