How Gen Z Can Slow Down Dating for Good | Opinion
You don’t need to look far to see that modern dating is messed up. Why else would a Facebook group called “Are We Dating The Same Guy NYC?” have more than 18,000 members? Why else would singles need an entirely new vocabulary (“ghosting,” “breadcrumbing”) to describe all the ways they can be mistreated by a partner?
Ask anyone what divides the dating habits of Gen Z and earlier generations and you’ll get the same answer-dating apps. Nearly half of Americans aged 18 to 29 have used a dating app at some point. And about one in 10 Americans say they have been in a “committed relationship or married” someone they met through a dating service.
These numbers seem good at first glance, but another story emerges when one considers that the percentage of Americans aged 25 to 50 who have never been married has quadrupled since 1970. The low rates of marriage combined with high usage of dating apps paints a dark picture of a dating scene for people who are serious about finding a spouse. Young people are on dating apps and wasting their time swiping left and right, unable to find a genuine connection that leads to marriage.
I managed to catch the last chopper out of ‘Nam-translation: I’m married-but let me tell you, my single friends are more than happy to give me an earful about their online dating experiences. Yes, there are people out there who really think it’s a good idea to use their roommate’s photos instead of their own on their dating profile. There are dudes who expect their date to pay the whole bill. There are women who’ve bought into the lie that any guy who treats them well must have something wrong with him. What makes for a funny “bad date” story to tell your friends turns into years of fizzled out conversations, painful ghosting, and first dates that have you wondering if maybe you’re the problem. (lebih…)