Dating websites and applications brought significant changes to the process of building a romantic relationship. However, it might be challenging to assess the data on the efficiency of these platforms, as some of the most crucial statistics are related to its users’ private lives. The two most popular dating websites are Tinder and Badoo, which possess the largest userbases across the industry (Vargas, 2021). This essay will analyze these two websites, their success rates, their beneficial and detrimental effects on society.
Tinder is the first major product in the dating and hook-ups websites market. Tinder reveals that the application helped approximately 50% of its users to schedule up a date (Liberatore, 2019). This is the most popular platform among older audiences due to its simplicity of the user interface and less intrusive profile set-up process (Vargas, 2021). Badoo, which is less widely known, yet possesses a significantly higher number of users, has more substantial features (Vargas, 2021). This website provides more in-depth information regarding potential partners and has more features that help people to connect with each other (Vargas, 2021). The company behind Badoo has revealed that only 20% of its users actively search for a date through this platform, while many more are looking for friends with similar interests (Needleman, 2012). These websites play a crucial role in the market, as their success has revealed new trends in relationship building among adults.
Nowadays, people perform many of their daily tasks online, spending hours on websites through their mobile devices and desktop PCs. The usage of such tools for dating purposes allows people to carefully choose whom to meet without completely breaking their attention on other tasks. They allow efficiency in communication by keeping it on-point and mobile, which gives many working people a chance to pursue relationships without harming their careers (Hobbs et al., 2016). Moreover, some people use these websites as social platforms, spending hours chatting with potential partners to ensure that their match is worth a meeting (Vargas, 2021). These websites have a vital role in the digitalization era, as many activities went online.
However, there are significant detrimental effects linked to dating websites and apps. Due to the lack of background checks of their users, these platforms are regularly used by criminals in their search for a new victim (Parmanand, 2020). Moreover, a significant percentage of users from both of these websites have revealed that it is more convenient to use this application to search for a sexual partner without any further obligations (Hobbs et al., 2016). Another issue brought up by these platforms is the tendency to create unrealistic self-promotion (Hobbs et al., 2016). It is not clear that these platforms themselves are encouraging such behavior.
In conclusion, dating platforms have forever changed the nature of the search for a partner, regardless of the reason for such an initiative. The most popular dating websites claim that their rates of a successful pairing are high, as they allow for an in-depth assessment of potential partners. These apps suit perfectly for a modern, fast-paced lifestyle, as they enable their users to avoid unnecessary interactions most of the time. They allow for easy socialization, which can bring both positive and negative encounters. Dating apps and websites encourage irresponsive behavior, and their users overestimate their value to promote themselves. Despite these facts, these websites are not the issue themselves.
References
Hobbs, M., Owen, S., & Gerber, L. (2016). Liquid love? Dating apps, sex, relationships and the digital transformation of intimacy. Journal of Sociology, 53(2), 271-284.
Liberatore, S. (2019). Study finds 50% of Tinder users have only been on one in-person date. Mail Online.
Needleman, R. (2012). Badoo: Social experiment or hookup site? CNET.
Parmanand, T. (2020). There are truly negative effects that come with dating apps. The Boar.
Vargas, E. (2021). Badoo vs. Tinder – which is better? DatingMentor.