Online dating is increasing in popularity. In 2022 there were 366 million online dating service users worldwide and the online dating industry generated 2.86 billion U.S. dollars, according to statista.com. Today we’re going to talk about WHO is dating online, WHY they are doing it, and of course we’ll talk about some of the problems that can arise when you look for love on the internet.
Lista di vocaboli
- A romantic comedy: commedia romantica.
- Your eyes meet: vi guardate l’un l’altro.
- Love at first sight: un colpo di fulmine; amore a prima vista.
- Straight: eterosessuale
- Dating pool: il gruppo di persone tra cui scegliere.
- A good match: un partner romantico ideale.
- Dating profile: un profilo di appuntamenti online.
- A dealbreaker: un elemento che rende una persona immediatamente incompatibile.
- To settle down: sistemarsi con qualcuno.
- To weed someone out: escludere una persona.
- Cringy: imbarazzante.
- 6-pack abs: gli addominali a tartaruga.
- To Google stalk someone: fare una ricerca approfondita su internet per determinare se qualcuno sia cattivo.
- Marital status: stato coniugale.
- Red flags: segnali d’allarme.
- Neurodiverse: il cervello funziona in un modo fuori dalla norma, ad esempio nelle persone autistiche.
- A long-distance relationship: una relazione a distanza.
- LGBTQIA+: una sigla utilizzata per identificare lesbiche, gay, bisessuali, transessuali, queer, intersessuali, asessuali e chiunque non si definisca eterosessuale.
- Catfishing: quando qualcuno mente sulla propria identità per far innamorare qualcuno di sé, di solito con l’obiettivo di defraudare o truffare la vittima.
- To ghost someone: decidere di non continuare il rapporto con qualcuno senza dirglielo.
- To stand someone up: dare buca a qualcuno.
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Let's talk about online dating
If you’re a character in a romantic comedy, then meeting the love of your life is simple: the basic formula is that you bump into someone who is attractive and approximately your age, which causes them to drop whatever they’re holding, then as you help them pick it up, your eyes meet and you both realize that it’s love at first sight.
In reality, meeting a romantic partner is usually more effortful and arguably less cute. This is where online dating comes in!
Who is using online dating apps the most?
In a survey done by the Pew Research Center in 2022, 3 in 10 American adults said that they have used a dating app at some point in their lives. This number is greater for people who are under 30 (53%), compared to Americans who are over 65 years old (13%). Also, men are more likely to use online dating apps than women. By the way, both of these trends are also seen in European countries such as Italy, Spain, Germany, France and the UK, according to research from 2021 done by Comscore.
The Pew survey also found that lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans used online dating much more than straight Americans (51% versus 28%). A person’s education, race, or community (rural, versus suburban), did not have as big of an impact on their likelihood to date online.
What are the Pros and Cons of online dating?
PRO #1: You have a bigger dating pool
With the internet, you can access way more single people than you would during the course of your regular day. This larger dating pool certainly increases your odds of finding a good match.
PRO #2: It's easier to detect Dealbreakers
With online dating, users can read peoples’ dating profiles ahead of time to see if there are any major dealbreakers and if so, they can weed those people out immediately. Some examples of dealbreakers include:
- Lifestyle dealbreakers
- whether someone has or wants children
- meat-eaters vs. vegetarians or vegans
- active vs. sedentary
- whether someone wants to settle down vs. just have fun and date
- Physical dealbreakers
- height
- age
- “able-bodied” versus disabled
- fitness level
- hair/baldness
- tattoos
- race/ethnicity
- sexual orientation
- Political/religious dealbreakers
- liberal vs. conservative
- religious vs. atheist or agnostic
- Financial dealbreakers
- income
- housing situation
- amount of debt
- Random dealbreakers
- Poor grammar
- Cringy profile pictures
- guys showing their 6-pack abs in the bathroom mirror
- guys holding dead animals
- pictures where the ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend is clearly cropped out of the photo!
PRO #3: You can Google stalk a person before you meet them
Many people feel more comfortable if they can Google stalk someone before going out on a first date with them. There’s a lot you can find out about people when you Google-stalk them:
- Is this person who they say they are?
- Is this person telling the truth about their employment?
- Is this person lying about their marital status?
- Does this person have a criminal history?
It’s important to spot these red flags as soon as possible!
PRO #4: It is helpful when you're looking for something specific
Have you always dreamt of marrying a Canadian? You can check out MapleMatch.com! Do you only want to marry someone who is Jewish? Go to JDate.com! Do you want to date someone who is neurodiverse or who has a medical disability? Sure! Sign up with disabilitymatch.com. What if you’re a guy who is obsessed with Christian techno music and you want to find a woman who shares your same passion? Yes, even that! You can use the site Plenty Of Fish (POF.com). There is something for everyone on the internet, especially if you are open to the idea of having a long-distance relationship.
As for the LGBTQIA+ community most of the mainstream dating sites will work just fine, but there are definitely dating sites out there that cater to this community, such as MenNation, HER, and Lex.
What are the Cons of online dating?
CON #1: Too many choices!
I once heard my sister refer to a dating website as “The People Store” because if you don’t like someone right away, you can just return them and try the next person. While this could be a good thing to weed out people who have red flags, it can also enable people to give up on someone too early. Sometimes, the best relationships are not the ones that start out as a “colpo di fulmine.” They’re the ones in which your affection grows over time.
CON #2: Dishonesty
It’s easier to lie to someone on the internet than to lie to someone in person:
- People may use profile pictures that were taken many years ago, or ones that have been heavily altered.
- People may make their jobs sound more prestigious than they are.
- People may lie about how tall they are or their age.
- People may leave out important details about their life, such whether they have kids.
An extreme example of dishonesty with regard to online dating is catfishing (Quando qualcuno mente sulla propria identità per far innamorare qualcuno con sè, di solito con l’obiettivo di frodare o truffare la vittima). No good!
CON #3: Harassment
Online dating unfortunately can expose you to harassment. Someone might send you unwanted sexual comments or pictures. Someone might feel rejected after a bad date and respond by sending that person mean or threatening messages.
CON #4: Online dating fatigue
Many people feel like they’re constantly swiping through dating profiles at all hours of the day: at work, before they go to bed at night, and as soon as they wake up in the morning. This can create a sense of fatigue, especially for people who have been on the apps for a long time.
There are also people who are sick of having negative dating experiences, such as being ghosted or stood up.
Sono Curiosa...
- Utilizzi le app di appuntamenti online? Se sì, quali sono? Quali sono le app più popolari nella tua zona?
- Quali sono gli elementi che rendono una persona immediatamente incompatibile quando si tratta dell’amore?
- Cosa ne pensi di questo testo? Hai capito tutto? Quali sono le parole che non sapevi prima?
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