Dating App Users Spend Just One Second on Profiles

Dating app users spend just one second making a decision about potential partners, according to new research.

Cognitive psychologists from the Universities of Lincoln and Swansea recreated dating app situations in an experimental setting, to better understand modern dating decision-making. The experiments asked groups of 200 participants to view mocked-up dating profiles with basic information including a photo, age, and name.

The research was conducted in partnership with eharmony and the full report has been published on their website.

The data indicated that when viewing time was limited to less than one second, participants were less likely to respond with a ‘match’ to a prospective partner. At least one full second of viewing the profiles was needed to make a fully considered decision.

Subsequent experiments looked at profile content and length and found the more information participants had, the more likely they would match with other users.

The research also analysed which factors of a profile are most important when deciding who to match. The biggest considerations for singles choosing a date are, typically, appearance-based factors such as age (65%), weight (54%), and height (46%). Lifestyle considerations such as location (65%), being a non-smoker (65%), and family set-up (45%) are also influential factors in choice of partner.

The research was led by Dr Robin Kramer, Cognitive Psychologist at the University of Lincoln, he said: “Cognitive psychology helps us to understand the human interactions going on around us every day. Our work with eharmony sheds light onto decisions made when it comes to dating and interacting with a new potential partner.

“Though nuanced, at the core, the research suggests Brits like to make informed decisions – the more information they have – the better they can judge potential compatibility.”