A new phenomenon has recently emerged that has made it difficult for people to find ‘the one,’ a study has revealed.
Researchers found young adults are suffering from ‘social media confusion’ caused by the platforms as well as dating apps.
The sites increase the temptation and desire for a new partner, making people less likely to stick it out in a relationship, the researchers say.
And users are exposed to more attractive and wealthy people than ever before, which is distorting their expectations in a potential mate.
The team suggested that people ages 18 to 30 are now valuing ‘pleasure’ over long-term stability.
Researchers found young adults are suffering from ‘social media confusion’ caused by the platforms and dating apps that have distorted how people judge their options – even in current relationships
‘Human mate selection is a complicated psychological process, which is effectively influenced by multiple societal factors including appearance, personality and financial situation,’ said Chayan Munshi, Founder and Executive Director of the Ethophilia Research Foundation in Santiniketan, India.
The pool of accessible mates has grown to extreme levels, with an estimated 60 million people in the US using online dating platforms as of March out of the 117 million people who are currently single.
The new study will be presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual Conference in Prague this week.
The survey asked participants questions, including ‘Do you feel confused when selecting a life partner?,’ ‘What are your criteria for selecting a life partner?,’ ‘Do you still look for other partners if you are already in a stable relationship?,’ and ‘Do you like to switch to a ‘better option’ when selecting a life partner?’
Women said they experienced more confusion when looking for a mate than men.
But overall, people’s uncertainty over who was actually available to date threw off their ability to judge a potential partner.
Those who are already in a relationship might download a dating app just to see the other options, ‘for instance, impulsiveness is significantly exhibited, and there is a decrease in in-person social interactions,’ said Munshi.
‘This is exposing confusion while people search for a mating partner and can manifest complexities in maintaining a relationship.’
More than that, the increase in access to sexually stimulating or attractive content has distorted what people expect out of a potential partner including their appearance, personality and financial situation.
With the advancement of AI and filters, people are changing their photos to be better looking than the rest with smoother skin, more luscious hair and other enticing qualities.
One woman said she came across a profile with a more enhanced picture, and told Vogue: ‘I was feeling cheeky, so I messaged him: ‘Is this AI?’
‘He was like, ‘Yeah, can you tell?’ I found it slightly unnerving. Then I felt worried for other women, who might not be so media literate and able to notice.’
This exposure ‘creates certain perceptions of reality in the young mindset, which ultimately creates confusion in terms of selecting potential mating partners,’ Munshi said.
Women expressed that they experienced more confusion when looking for a mate than men, but overall, people’s uncertainty over who was actually available to date threw off their ability to judge a potential partner
However, the study’s authors said more research needs to be conducted to further understand how societal demands are causing young adults to feel pressure in the online dating world.
The findings suggest that the ‘pleasure index’ or ‘adrenaline rush’ in relationships has become more important than long-term stability’ which can impact young people’s mental health.
‘It is alarming that impulsiveness or confusion can lead to instability in the human relation-maintaining behavior, which is actually affecting the normal social behavior in humans.’
‘The pattern now is notable enough to indicate that this might modify the social norms of partner choice behavior in young humans, which might have a significant effect on the brain-behavior circuit,’ the study’s author continued.
‘In the long run, this may eventually alter the fundamental protocol of evolutionary mating strategies.’
