A study of middle-aged heterosexual dating app users revealed that men use a higher number of dating apps than women. They have also used them for a longer duration, to a greater extent for casual sex, and for more time per day compared to women. The paper was published in the International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology.
Dating apps are online platforms that help people meet potential romantic partners by matching users based on their preferences, location, and interests. They typically use algorithms to suggest compatible profiles, allowing users to interact through messaging or video calls. Dating apps have transformed modern relationships by making it easier to meet new people in a digital-first world.
Some apps, such as Tinder and Bumble, use a swiping mechanism to indicate interest, while others, like Hinge, encourage meaningful conversations through profile prompts. OkCupid and eHarmony use personality-based questionnaires to find better matches for serious relationships. Other platforms offer curated matches instead of endless swiping.
Study author Adriana Jimenez-Muro and her colleagues aimed to analyze dating app usage in middle-aged people, particularly focusing on differences between heterosexual men and women.
Study participants included 298 individuals between 25 and 50 years of age, recruited by the data collection company Netquest. Their average age was 38 years, and 51% were women. Participants were required to be current dating app users, meaning they had used a dating app in the three months prior to participating in the study.
Study participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and a questionnaire about dating app usage. The dating app questionnaire asked participants to indicate which dating apps they were using, how frequently, their average connection time, and their main motives for use. It also asked about the outcomes of using these apps, specifically with how many people they had a face-to-face encounter, sexual intercourse, a romantic relationship, or a friendship after meeting on dating apps.
Results showed that men use a greater number of dating apps than women. They also had a longer app usage history, with longer daily use and a longer overall history of usage. Men used dating apps more than women to seek casual sex.
“Knowing middle-aged people’s dating app usage profiles and the differences between men and women will have relevant implications when designing and implementing preventive strategies and promoting these apps’ recreational and responsible use from a gender perspective,” the study authors concluded.
The study sheds light on the dating app usage patterns of middle-aged individuals. However, it should be noted that the dating app usage questionnaire was an ad hoc instrument created by the authors specifically for this study and has not been validated. There is a possibility that different question formulations could have yielded somewhat different results.
The paper, “Dating app users: Differences between middle-aged men and women,” was authored by Adriana Jimenez-Muro, Pedro J. Ramos-Villagrasa, and Angel Castro.