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Although I myself haven’t experienced the minefield that is online dating, I’ve heard many a terrifying and humorous tale surrounding it. In fact, I’ve never even been on an internet dating site, let alone subject myself to a potentially awkward first date (some may call this a lucky escape) – but have I missed out?
Speaking to numerous friends and colleagues about this increasingly prominent tactic to finding love, it got me thinking about dating and finding ‘the one’. Looking back 50 years or so, you might be lucky enough to be living next door to your future husband, or perhaps you would meet him, or her, at the weekly dance. The thing is, today, that seems increasingly difficult. Is it because we’re too busy? Too fussy? Or in fact that we prefer scouring online sites for someone who catches our eye – and just hope that we catch theirs too?
I met my boyfriend through work, as it seems so many of us do these days, or if not that then through friends. Failing those two options, it seems as though many of us are now looking online. In a recent study conducted by the Pew Research Center, it is estimated that 23% of Americans are finding their future spouse or long-term partner online. Whilst the dating website, eHarmony, are quick to predict that more than 50% of couples will be meeting online by 2031.
Of course, going back to the simpler days of dating, looking online wasn’t an option, but I am forever intrigued at the speed in which online dating sites have progressed in recent years. From including your Uber rating (is that really a thing?) to swiping past someone purely based on one photograph, to more advanced sites that now match you via your specific interests; are we losing that romantic notion of love at first site? Are we now simply tuned to fall in love with a picture uploaded onto a website which we quickly scroll through on our lunch break?
Like all of life’s conveniences, perhaps we are simply moving with the times and as such, more and more of us are enjoying the ease of starting our search for love online. But, like all dating experiences, digital or not, you may have to be willing to kiss, or swipe, a few frogs before you find your prince.
