
Half of US adults say dating has gotten harder in the last 10 years - bezmenov
https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2020/08/20/nearly-half-of-u-s-adults-say-dating-has-gotten-harder-for-most-people-in-the-last-10-years/
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thhhhrowaway44
This is pretty much coincidental with the rise of online dating. Who could
have guessed that trusting the adtech industry with your love life was a bad
idea?

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jmeister
Yet another instance of blaming societal ills on tech, instead of the
supposedly freedom/agency loving _users_.

Read Houellebecq or any dating advice forum, for arguments on how excess
_choice_ enabled by apps makes dating less egalitarian and ruins it for the
“weaker” section.

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thhhhrowaway44
I am not blaming _tech_ \- I doubt dating has become harder when everyone got
mobile phones -, I am blaming _the adtech industry_ which is well-known for
shady practices, dark patterns, and other UX/algorithmic shenanigans designed
to maximize engagement on their apps, regardless of whether the app users
derive personal happiness from it. It's not controversial, even on HN where
half the demographics is on adtech jobs, to remind people that the goal of
dating apps is to keep you on them, and if you find a fulfilling relationship,
you won't stay on the apps, so they are incentivized to make sure you _don 't_
find a fulfilling relationship. Hence the headline: dating has become harder.

As for Houellebecq, his books are mostly about how gen X dudes feel empty
inside - the crude prose and extremely plain writing style make for an
interesting couple of books but there's very little beyond it. He also somehow
makes the argument that men would be somehow _less_ frustrated in places where
people have less agency in their dating choices, which is an interesting, if
unproved assertion - it would be nice if any citizens of the Islamic Republic
of Iran, or Algeria, or Pakistan on HN could chime in and say if they agree
with it.

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imtringued
Your first comment was too short to get your idea across and easy to
misinterpret. Now that you have clarified your stance it's much easier to
understand your argument.

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anotheryou
Could they have all aged by 10 years?

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dkdk8283
Side rant

Reducing sexual encounters to normalizing consent forms is pretty ridiculous.
A few creeps ruined it for all of us

I am a man and if a woman asked me to sign something prior to sex I would
leave

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ck425
Sure signing forms might kill the vibe but the move towards enthusiastic
consent and actually asking 'What do you want to do?' is great imo.

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rdtwo
Lol is it like ordering a sandwich - avacado Cheese and bacon are extra cost
but mayo and mustard are complimentary

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chrisseaton
Have half of US adults got experience dating now and ten years ago? Seems
doubtful?

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ta17711771
Why?

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chrisseaton
For a start, half of US adults are married, so aren't dating anyone at the
moment. So that by itself seems to prove it right off the bat.

But beyond that, half of US adults are over 38, so likely many of these aren't
dating even if they aren't married.

So seems obvious that fewer than half of US adults are dating at all, and
obviously the only a proportion of that group will have also been dating ten
years ago, as they won't be that old, or will have been previously married.

So how can half of all adults have an informed opinion on this?

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jokz
Online dating give the illusion of endless choice

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TheBillyMania
Some men are joining the MGTOW movement. I’m sure that has some effect.

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burfog
Half of US adults are women.

Men, after aging for the last 10 years: "No, it hasn't gotten harder."

Women, after aging for the last 10 years: "Yes, it has gotten harder."

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the_jeremy
> single-and-looking men and women report equal levels of dissatisfaction with
> their dating lives and the ease of finding people to date

The article is not long. Please don't make unfounded claims that are directly
refuted by the article we're supposed to be discussing.

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burfog
I carefully read it, determining that my claim was not directly refuted. The
text you quoted is suggestive of that, but look at the actual numbers.

