The Discourse on Users and Usage

Stereotypical Pinterest User: Alanis Morissette

• Female
• Middle-aged
• Mother of two
• Boards: Motherhood & Parenting, Health & Wellness, Home

Intended User: Anyone with an Internet Connection

• Any gender
• Aged 13 or older
• Any marital status
• Any type of board pertaining to individual interests

Pinterest has certain expectations of its users that would be using their platform, in accordance to their overall vision. As Van Dijck explains, “users are recipients and consumers, producers and participants of culture,” (Van Dijck, 32). Ben Slibermann, the man behind Pinterest, originally wanted Pinterest to be an extremely abstract platform in order for people to use it in their own way while attracting users of all demographics (Friz and Gehl, 687). In this sense, Pinterest’s vision is not only to display ideas, but it also encourages users to express their individualism and tastes through pins and boards, and interact with one another by discussing, adding comments, and giving a personal touch to the pin (Wang et. al, 1).

In addition to building a collection of pins to share with others, there is a very prevalent discourse that Pinterest users are eiter moms, or simply women in general. While it is true that the strong majority of Pinterest users are women, this result went against Slibermann’s original intent. He wanted Pinterest to cater to all demographics, because “finding other people in the world that appreciate your tastes and interests is not a gender-specific thing,” (Friz and Gehl, 687). The discourse surrounding gender and Pinterest users contribute to the “explicit use,” which pertains to how users actually use Pinterest in opposition to the original supposed intent (Van Dijck, 33). Even though Slibermann’s vision included creativity, individuality and discovery, Pinterest’s stereotype is that it is a “mommy blog” that is used for recipes, kitchen hacks, kids’ crafts, and gardening tips.

Works Cited

Friz, A. and R. W. Gehl (2016). Pinning the feminine user: Gender scripts in Pinterest’s sign-up interface. Media, Culture & Society, 38(5), 686-703.

Wang, R., F. Yang, S. Zheng, S. S. Sundar (2016). Why do we Pin? New Gratifications Explain Unique Activities in Pinterest. Social Media and Society, 2(3), 1-9.

Van Dijck, J. (2013). The culture of connectivity: A critical history of social media. Oxford: Oxford University Press.