This document summarizes research on online dating. It discusses the popularity and growth of online dating services, with 45 million Americans visiting sites in 2003 and 1 in 5 singles and couples meeting online. It also covers attitudes toward online dating, deception in profiles, and strategies used. Research found some lies about physical characteristics but they were small. Overall, online dating is seen as a good way to meet people and not desperate. It stems from needs to find partners and is facilitated by Internet use.

1. NESSA NGUYEN
California Lutheran University
November 29, 2011
Communication Theories
Britney (1:00) Gaga (4:22) Kesha (1:10)

2. ON TARGET
Overview
Online dating
Evidence of popularity
Attitudes toward online dating
Deception in online dating
Strategies in online dating
Discussion

3. ON TARGET
Growth of online dating services
- Revenue quadrupled from 2001 to 2002, $72 - $302 million
(comScore, Mulrine & Hsu, 2003)
- $470 million in 2004 (OPA, Madden & Lenhart, 2006)
- 45 million Americans visited an online dating site
(comScore, Hamron, 2003)
- Match.com’s study (2010): 1 in 5 singles have
dated online, 1 in 5 couples met online

4. ON TARGET
Niche markets of online dating
Segmentation Websites
Religion Jdate, Christian Mingle, Christian Singles
Race Black Singles, Black People Meet, Black Planet
Age Matchmaker vs. Nerve Personal,
Plenty Of Fish, OkCupid, Zoosk
Education
The Right Stuff
Interest Science Connection

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Literature review
RESEARCH ON ONLINE DATING

6. ON TARGET
Madden & Lenhart (2006)
Pew Internet & American Life Project
SURVEY STATISTICS -Think it poses danger:
- 61% of American adults know + Adults: two thirds
someone who has dated online + Single & looking: two thirds
+ Online daters: 43%
- Think it’s a good way to meet people
+ Adults: 44%
+ Single & looking: 61%
+ Online daters: 80%
- Do not think it’s “desperate”
+ Adults: 61%
+ Single & looking: 80%
+ Online daters: 80%

7. ON TARGET
Deception in online dating profiles
- Compared to identity construction
Facebook (nonymity)
(Zhao, Grasmuck & Martin, 2008)
+ More honest & accountable
+ Project a more desirable self
- Deception about age (Epstein, 2007) - Lies about physical appearances
+ Men: Increased distribution at 32, 36 (Hitsch, Hortacsu & Ariely, 2004)
+ Women: age spikes at 29, 35, 44 + Women lie more about weight:
6lbs, 18lbs, 20lbs discrepancies in
their 20s, 30s, 40s
+ Men lie more about height
+ BMIs are lower than national
averages (2-4 pts for women, 1 for
men)

8. ON TARGET
Strategies in online dating
- Toma, Hancock & Ellison (2008):
+ Lies about weight & height were small in magnitude
+ Participants who were farther from the mean lied more
+ Strategically balanced deception with anticipated constraints
- Uncertainty reduction techniques (Gibbs, Ellision & Lai, 2010)
+ Warranting: indirect, e.g. Googling, picking up on cues
+ Self-disclosure: to prompt reciprocal self-disclosure
+ Information-seeking strategies
- Third-party confirmation/shared social network
+ Engage.com encourages family members/friends to join
+ Community approach (Epstein, 2007),
word-of-mouth marketing

9. ON TARGET
Discussion: Online dating
- Stemmed from people’s - Facilitated by extensive use - More sophisticated services &
needs for meeting of the Internet & computer- dollars in marketing
suitable, long-term mediated communication
partners - Future research: matching
- Does not substitute long- techniques, screening users,
term face-to-face interaction how to utilize services

10. ON TARGET
Bibliography
Epstein, R. (2007, January). The truth about online dating. Scientific American Mind, 3(20),
54-61.
Hamron, A. (2003, June 29). Online dating sheds its stigma as losers.com. New York Times.
Hitsch, G. J., Hortacsu, A., & Ariely, D. (2005, January). What makes you click: An empirical analysis
of online dating.
Gibbs, J. L., Ellison, N. B., & Lai, C. (2010). First comes love, then comes Google: an
investigation of uncertainty reduction strategies and self-disclosure in online dating.
Communication Research, 38(1), 70-100. doi: 10.1177/0093650210377091
Madden, M., & Lenhart, A. (2006). Online dating. Pew Internet & American Life Project,
Match.com. (2010). Recent trends: Online dating. Retrieved from
http://cp.match.com/cppp/media/CMB_Study.pdf
Mulrine, A. & Hsu, C. (2003, September 29). Love.com. U.S. News & World Report, 135(10), 52-58.
Toma, C. L., Hancock, J. T., & Ellison, N. B. (2008). Separating fact from fiction: An
examination of deceptive self-presentation in online dating profiles. Personality and
Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(8), 1023 - 1036. doi: 10.1177/0146167208318067
Zhao, S., Grasmuck, S. & Martin J. (2008, September). Identity construction on Facebook: Digital
empowerment in anchored relationships. Computers in Human Behavior, 24(5), 1816-
1836.