Digital Intimacy: Emotional Capitalism in the Post-digital Era

The post-digital era is reshaping intimacy, challenging traditional ideas of attraction and connection. While technology is often thought to weaken personal relationships, this study suggests it provides new ways to form genuine connections, overcoming geographic limits and enhancing interactions. However, it also complicates relationships, with dating now involving strategic self-presentation and idealized personas. This digital facade can lead to disappointments, fostering "emotional capitalism," where emotions are influenced by economic principles. This research delves into the dynamics of digital and traditional intimacy, advocating for the proactive integration of technology in intimate relationships to balance progress with control.

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Digital Intimacy & Digital Emotions

“Digital Intimacy” refers to the complexity and quality of emotional connections that are cultivated through digital platforms and technologies. It involves our capacity to forge meaningful bonds, share personal experiences, and maintain honest communication, all within the digital realm.

Book Covers

Moments Collection

I asked participants to select photos from their albums that represented moments they felt increased intimacy or disconnection. These images were categorized to help us understand patterns in digital intimacy.

Digital Emotions Visualization

Utilizing AI, I developed an emotion grading system. Then based on the data of the grading scores, I used programming tools to create visual representations of these emotions, which were compiled into a digital collection. Here is the visualization of the emotional states.

Thesis Book Inner Pages

The thesis book includes the secondary and primary research of my thesis topic, also the methodology of how I processed the capstone project.

Thesis Book Display

This book is using hardcover and sewn binding to ensure that the sharpness of the colors could be displayed well and it can be flattened 180 degree.

Pamphlet - Digital Emotions

The pamphlet is the collection of these emotional states for my participant.

Pamphlet Display

The pamphlet is the collection of these emotional states for my participant. I folded these pages together and the book can be either opened from the front or the back.

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