Online Dating

Online dating, or the initiation and development of romantic relationships by means of the Internet, has received a fair amount of criticism and negative representation via news outlets, fictive entertainment, and social discourse. Nonetheless, the practice continues to grow as individuals continue to declare satisfaction with the sites and more online dating outlets are available than ever before. Many of these outlets charge users a fee to match them to dating partners based on personality and interest. Other outlets, such as chat rooms and message forums, allow individuals to meet in a public outlet and then e-mail each other as they become engaged in a given topic. Still other sites act as outlets for those seeking nontraditional relationships or specific sexual practices. Perhaps one of the most attractive elements of online dating is that it allows individuals the ability to seek out others with similar relational desires and it can minimize the embarrassment or rejection that may accompany face-to-face dating rituals.

Most online dating is initiated through commercial outlets that allow online daters to respond to or post personal advertisements describing the type of relationship that is being sought. In terms of heterosexual dating, much of what is found in these advertisements for online daters does not differ from the traditional personal advertisement found in the classified sections of periodicals. Men tend to seek out women who are attractive, petite, and kind; while women tend to seek men who are professional, financially successful, and family oriented. Unlike traditional personal advertisements, online dating allows for information to be shared, as the physical limitation of newspapers is eliminated; so in addition to demographic dating interests, online daters are able to learn about others' political leanings, popular interests, and other detailed lifestyle information.

Online dating has allowed nonheterosexual daters a larger outlet for pursuing relationships. While many newspapers do not offer “male-seeking-male” or “female-seeking-female” categories for those wanting to place personal advertisements, Internet dating forums frequently allow for these relationships to be sought. Many gay, lesbian, and bisexual persons have also reported that exploring online dating profiles has helped them to come to terms with their sexual orientations and has given them hope that they will one day find a relationship in a heteronormative world. Transgender persons particularly report that they feel safer in communicating online, especially given that revelation of gender identity can lead to uncomfortable interactions.

Those engaging in online dating typically enjoy more freedom to reveal or conceal elements of their personality or traits. Since all online dating communication is mediated through words, symbols, and pictures selected by those engaging in the conversation, the persons involved have more freedom to edit statements, leave out undesirable traits, and generally conceal information they believe may be unattractive to their online partners. This has led some critics of online dating to suggest that it is unsafe for women, who may be coerced into a dangerous situation, but this criticism has been refuted by the large number of women who report satisfaction and security in the process. Both women and men report that they enjoy the ability to conceal their physical features via online interaction and that this allows them to be evaluated more on the basis of personality than on looks.

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