WeChat as the coordinator of polymedia: Chinese women maintaining intercultural romantic relationships

Abstract

This article considers the ways in which the super-sticky all-in-one platform WeChat acts as the coordinator of a polymedia environment – and not just part of the polymedia environment – in mediating intercultural romantic relationships in the Greater Bay Area of China. Based on qualitative interviews, the article explores how WeChat coordinates a diverse range of digital communication tools for typical intercultural couples (Chinese women and foreign men) to mediate and maintain intimacy. The article contends that WeChat mainly derives its coordinator legitimacy and power from the government's prohibition of non-Chinese social media, WeChat's multi-functionality and its ‘local’ nature – Chinese language, social networking capacities and connectivity to other Chinese applications. Finally, this article finds that the power asymmetry caused by WeChat coordinating ecosystem of converged communication has significantly empowered middle-class Chinese women to take control of their intimate intercultural relationships. Research limitations and theoretical implications are discussed.

A study of the factors influencing HIV-preventive intentions among “hookup” application users

“…If culture is a “toolkit” offering culturally competent actors a set of ideas and practices with which to explain their choices, for instance, to use Ann Swider's metaphor from her article “Culture in Action,” then the hookup culture offers students many tools for embracing casual sex but few for articulating why they may prefer other kinds of sexual engagement, or none at all (Wade, 2017 ). In addition, Xiong and Liu ( 2022 ) believe that the ways in which the “super-sticky” “all-in-one platform” WeChat acts as the coordinator of a polymedia environment - and not just part of the polymedia environment - in mediating intercultural romantic relationships in the Greater Bay Area of China. However, another study studied online dating platforms as sites.…”

Why Is One Social Media Platform Not Enough? A Typology of Platform-Swinging Behavior and Associated Affordance Preferences

“…Each of these functionalities can be perceived as an independent platform within the WeChat ecosystem. WeChat not only provides a multifaceted media environment for information exchange but also caters to users' practical life needs across various domains (Xiong & Liu, 2023). Consequently, WeChat emerges as a comprehensive polymedia ecosystem that intricately integrates into most, if not all, aspects of users' daily lives.…”

The transnationality of mobile media and contemporary racisms: A future research agenda

“…To indicate what a transnational sensibility can bring to one's analysis, we can turn to Xiong and Liu’s (2022) work about the mobile-mediated relationship between the middle-class women in China's Greater Bay (GB) Area and their foreigner partners, over half of whom are from the West. Xiong and Liu detail how these cross-cultural couples negotiate their relationships within the distinct socio-political dynamics of China's telecommunications industry.…”