TIKTOK LIVE MATCH AND DIGITAL SOCIETY: A SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This study examines the impact of punitive performativity behaviors in TikTok Live Match on women’s dignity and digital identity formation. TikTok Live Match, a real-time interactive competition, frequently incorporates penalty-based performances and public punishments, particularly for participants who lose live matches. While framed as entertainment, these practices often involve actions that undermine participants' self-respect, with female streamers disproportionately subjected to such exploitative dynamics. Using a qualitative sociological methodology, data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with female participants and general viewers, combined with ethnographic observation of online interactions. The findings demonstrate how platform-driven digital entertainment commodities women’s bodies and emotional labor, transforming dignity into a negotiable currency within competitive digital economies. The research further reveals patterns of gendered humiliation, performativity compliance, and online harassment, raising concerns about the normalization of public shaming in digital spaces. This study contributes to critical discussions on gender, platform capitalism, digital labor, and media ethics.