events
Does love have a price? Match.com's answer is yes. It is about fifty million dollars. It was for this amount that the site acquired competitor OkCupid on the eve of Valentine's Day. The acquisition indicates that online dating is not only successful and romantic, but also financially profitable.
According to a large-scale study, in 2010, the Internet became the most popular dating place, with people not only meeting there, but also creating couples.
“Online dating definitely works,” says one of the study's authors, New York University sociologist Reuben J. Thomas (Reuben J. Thomas). “We estimate that between 2007 and 2009, 23 percent of married couples in the US met online. Today, people meet online more often than at school, work, church, bars, clubs, etc.”
The Internet has become a place of acquaintance especially for certain groups of people who do not have the opportunity for offline romantic relationships. Thomas says that without a large number of potential partners, these people are turning to the network for help. In his opinion, this group of people also includes 30-40 year olds who are already married, as well as members of sexual minorities.
Invented profiles
Sites like Match.com, OkCupid, and eHarmony don't necessarily connect hearts, though. “When you look at social research data, it turns out that women over the past few decades don't want to be in touch with someone like they used to,” explains Thomas. On the contrary, statistics show the opposite.
Despite the fact that almost a quarter of Americans start dating online, some people still trust online profiles that look at ideal men and women.
Professor Jennifer Gibbs has studied online dating models and has noticed that people create either perfect profiles to stand out from the crowd, or more or less close to reality, at the risk of getting lost in the huge online dating market.
“I think the same thing happens in the real world when we write a resume or go to an interview trying to embellish and exaggerate the positive aspects and mask negative qualities,” – says the professor.
Online+offline=?
Some people cheat on dating sites about their age and weight. Thus, they seem to be protected from filtered searches. Minor “flaws” on the internet look different than they do in the real world. “When you meet someone in reality, you may not know their age, but online it's stricter: 'If you're 35, I'll meet you, if you're 36, forget it',” Gibbs explains.
On the other hand, perfect web relationships can be disappointing in reality. Researchers refer to the term “hyperpersonal effect”, which means idealizing people based on a wealth of information collected online.
“The more people chat online before meeting face to face for the first time, the more likely it is that the first date will be disappointing, as the image created may not match the real person with whom, After all, you won't be able to live,” says Gibbs.
So while online dating is effective (10 million American couples are proof), it's important to understand the difference between online and offline relationships.
Is love blind?
At its core, a dating site is a “marketplace” where you can easily find interesting people to chat with, but long-term relationships require offline “support”.
“Dating sites bring people together, and sometimes it feels like just a few clicks and you'll find your soulmate,” says Gibbs. “In fact, this is only the first step, and it takes a long process of developing relationships to get to know a person.”
Gibbs knows that for sure. The researcher met her husband on Match.com.