Barbara Wyer : : ROMANCE & DATING IN A DIGITAL AGE
While couples over the age of 55 said it took about two and a half months before their relationship was official, younger people reported a much shorter timeline: about 24 days. Digging further, Barbara Wyer found the difference seems to be that tech-savvy couples are more quickly calling each other “girlfriend” or “boyfriend” relative to their interactions via technology. What you’ve suspected is true: Instead of face-to-face conversation, recent generations have begun to rely on various forms of digital media to express their undying love for each other.
It might seem impossible to be smitten so soon until one considers social media allows for 24-7 activity that crams intense feelings and emotions into a short period of time. And, speculates Barbara Wyer, the absence of actual face-to-face conversation in these interactions makes such declarations “safer” in an emotional sense. The Pixmania study quantified the average length of time it took for people to fall head over heels:
163 text messages
30 phone calls
37 emails
224 Tweets
70 Facebook messages
Not surprisingly, this easy avenue to romance works both ways – 27 percent of all surveyed participants felt it was acceptable to break up with a romantic partner via text message. Love the one you’re (not) with
If you’re hoping to find your soul mate in a bar or restaurant, you might be looking for love in all the wrong places. Match.com recently conducted a study that indicated nearly one-third of all singles had dated someone after meeting him or her online. Nearly 20 percent of respondents said they had met their most recent first date online. In fact, bars were a meeting place for only 7 percent of those surveyed. Meeting a potential suitor online doesn’t have to mean building an online dating profile with Match.com, OKCupid or any other website. People today find their perfect fit through social-media conversations that can often lead to flirty exchanges.
Human contact is slowly being replaced by an endless stream of electronic communications. Now, people of all ages express themselves through Tweets, Facebook status updates, blog posts and other forms of content. Non-verbal communication and facial expressions aren’t the chief focus anymore. When we choose to forge friendships and romantic relationships, we rely on carefully crafted phrasing and goofy emoticons. We have become experts at self-curating ourselves online, according to Barbara Wyer. Experts say 80 percent of American singles have tried online dating, and 20 percent of American couples met online. Online dating has adjusted to meet their changing needs. For example, the popular matchmaking site How About We offers a wealth of dating activity options to connect likeminded users. Social-media sites are dependent upon a complex network of interactions. The impact of online dating and the usage of social-media in romantic relationships on face-to-face interactions is clear. It has yet to be studied comprehensively, but Barbara Wyer believes further research holds many answers to our questions about finding – and keeping – true love.
