CHICAGO – Many people will agree that scouring dating websites looking for love can be frustrating. And now a group of U.S. psychology professors released a study on Tuesday exposing that the dismal results are not worth that frustration.
“Online dating seems to offer the promise of unlimited opportunity for singles to meet. But the reality is that the long-term success of these pairings is about .03%,” study author Sal Stein, a professor of psychology at Brighten University, said in an interview. That is about one third of one percent.
The study defined “lasting love” as any relationship that resulted in long-term dating of six months or more. For every 350 dates that were set up online, only one led to relationships that lasted to the six month mark.
In comparison, meeting someone through other means, such as family, friends, work, school or at a bar resulted in a 29% chance of long-term dating. That is nearly 1,000 times more successful than a dating site connection. And it shows that there is no substitute for meeting face-to-face.
Stein also explained that there are significant problems with online dating. Foremost, people are overwhelmed by seemingly endless lists of profiles. Second, these profiles are often filled with misrepresentations.
When there are a lot of choices, people think of their matches as readily disposable. After a couple of dates someone who frequently uses online sites is likely to dismiss a possible mate in favor of someone new from the bottomless pit of possibilities.
The investigation also revealed that online profiles contain substantial embellishments. “People lie about their height, financial success and also say that they are younger,” Stein stated. This leads to disappointment and mistrust.
Online dating regulars tend to be unrealistic in their expectations. Stein explains, “these men and women think that they are more desirable than they actually are, and that they rate better looking matches than they are getting. Reality never hits them the way it would at a physical venue.”
The bottom line? If you are single and looking for love, you should head out to a local bar or ask your friends and family to match you up. Do not look for your next date on the internet
Nuance news 