A recent study highlights how younger generations value social media, and the role it plays in their dating life. 36% of people between the ages of 13 and 39 state that social media is an essential part of their dating life.
Research company YPulse explained that this ‘essential’ use of social media can take different forms. For some, social media can be a path to connecting with someone, making initial contact, getting to know them, and exchanging numbers.
39% of 13 to 39 year olds said that they met a romantic partner on social media, as compared to 29% who met a romantic partner on a dating app. Social media is the second most fruitful way to meet a partner, behind meeting at an educational institution.
For others, social media is a tool for ‘stalking’ a match from a dating app, finding out whether their social media profiles reflect the person they claim to be on their dating app profiles.
Additionally, social media plays an important role in solidifying relationships, with 27% of Gen Z saying commitment to a romantic partner takes the form of posting them on social media.
However, social media has its downsides for dating. 55% of the above mentioned group believe that social media makes it hard to be in a committed relationship as it displays many other options out there.
Not only that, but social media facilitates jealousy of other people’s relationships. Although 79% of young people know that relationships on social media are not what they are in real life, they still said that social media can feel like a comparison game for relationships.