Dating

Dating is the process by which people meet to spend time together with the intent of becoming better acquainted over time to decide if they wish to commit to a long-term relationship. Dating took place long before the Internet, with people meeting and expressing interest in each other in a variety of ways. People make dating relationships through a number of social networks, including random encounters, through friends and family members, at school, at work, or in clubs and associations.

Many people meet through these face-to-face networks by encountering others directly in the course of daily life or through a connection who is familiar with both actors and can match up their wants and needs. Successful pairings for dating, courtship, and marriage depend not only on physical attraction but similar demographic characteristics, such as age, educational level, and religious affiliation, along with lifestyles and values. Thus, introduction of individuals from existing social circles, especially with a similarity of partners that signals a basic compatibility, will reflect homophily. Meeting in college, for example, increases the chances of a similarity of interests, such as sharing a major course of study and future occupational goals. Dating couples from a common workplace participate in an organizational culture together, although some companies prohibit fraternization at work to avoid conflicts of interest.

Along with encounters in everyday life, people can write and answer ads in magazines and periodicals or hire experts to help them find appropriate dates. The use of print ads by people seeking relationships proliferated beginning in the 1970s, as did matchmaking services, which were often expensive. Studies of ads in newspapers and magazines often examined gender roles, which are often traditional. Researchers found that men concentrate more on appearances, while women focus more on education or occupation, a finding replicated by studies of online personals. More recent studies of online ads often confirm the persistence of these gender orientations. People not posting photos, especially women, receive many fewer responses.

Once the Internet became an option, the number of daters choosing print media to place ads declined considerably. Face-to-face matchmakers still exist, perhaps most notably in the reality television show Millionaire Matchmaker on Bravo, in which host Patti Stanger handpicks dates for both male and female millionaires. Stanger interviews her clients, suggesting changes in appearance and behavior that will more likely appeal to prospective mates.

With the steadily rising age for marriage in the United States now past the mid-20s for both women and men, young people explore dating for longer periods of time. As more university graduates leave their school years still single, they search for partners at work, at their places of worship, in voluntary organizations, and, increasingly, online.