College students often use online dating apps for convenience, however they may be better off speaking to people in person to avoid building relationships upon untrue information (Jenny Waterson/Creative commons).
College is known as a time to explore new opportunities. As they take their first steps out into “the real world,” students often find themselves doing things they never thought they would. Before, one may have been content to stay home with a movie and their favorite snacks, yet now one may have the urge to throw on a new outfit and party all night long. Given all of these changes, does dating change too?
According to a study conducted by ABODO, 70 percent of college students use dating apps such as Tinder, Bumble, Zoosk and OKCupid to form connections. With that said, dating apps are now tailoring themselves to be more accessible to college students such as Tinder U—a new feature which makes it easier for users to connect with students that go to the same college.
For many, online dating may seem like the perfect place to meet someone new. It is fast, efficient and lets you see the features of almost everyone you meet, allowing you to make a judgment on if they are a person you would actually like in your life. But this can be dangerous, however, as a reported 53 percent of people on dating apps lie, according to EHarmony. These lies range from using fake or photoshopped images, lying about age, profession, sexual habits and expectations for the relationship.
This ingenuine behavior can raise some major red flags in any relationship, planting the seeds of an issue at the very beginning and damaging the connection before it was able to develop into something more. Though this may happen with or without a dating platform, the presence of a divide so great can oftentimes make it seem as if the occasional lie is okay and may in fact benefit the relationship.
To be clear, lying in a relationship is never okay. It may seem much easier at times to tell a quick lie to impress the person one likes, but it never works. Instead, it leads to someone changing themselves into the person they think a potential partner wants them to be. The lies mask their genuine self and put stress on the relationship; oftentimes causing it to be terminated prematurely.
When on apps like Tinder, one may also match with multiple people at once. Though the presence of options may be reassuring in case someone turns out to be a bad match, this can be detrimental to the start of any relationship.
Due to multiple matching options being available, one is not able to make genuine connections with people they meet through the apps. Instead, they just become options as one searches for the best-case scenario. A relationship should start with a spark, a connection that makes one want to be with their significant other every hour of every day. If they are just another option, then that relationship will not go as far as one might hope.
Some may claim that online dating is easier. It helps to get rid of the insularity and anxiety that occurs at the beginning of a relationship and is much faster. Although that may be true for dating apps, it’s an inaccurate representation of the real world. Relationships take time, effort and compromise. Though they are well worth it, one must be able to direct all of themselves forward into a relationship. If someone feels they do not have the time or energy to start a relationship without the aid of an app, they should not be dating until they feel that is attainable.
This is not to say that online dating should not occur. Relationships can spring up in a variety of ways, from blind dates to meet-cutes, to dating apps—love always finds a way. Individuals cannot, however, just hide behind an app and hope that the right person swipes their way.
Grace Piscani is an English major freshman with double minors in journalism and musical theatre because she loves creating more work for herself than necessary.