The Good and Bad of Dating Apps

29 July 2019

The Good and Bad of Dating Apps

 

We are living in a digital age, and whether we like it or not, that means that a whole load of our socializing is done online, over the internet. Social media sites like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, are changing the way we, as a tribal people, are coming together in communities. As the world grows smaller, so do our opportunities to meet people through old fashioned means, but are dating apps the answer? I don't think so. Here's why!

 

What Exactly Is a Dating App?

 

The most significant known dating app is probably Tinder. These apps have arisen in the last few years as a popular way to meet new people online, partner up, and engage in this 'Hookup Culture' that has been growing recently. Dating apps were the natural evolution from old dating websites such as Plenty of Fish. Now that people can find a romantic partner from their phones, some strange implications are being presented.

 

A dating app encourages hookup culture. How? By presenting the user with an endless stream of options in sexual or romantic partners. While women report that they have trouble getting taken seriously on these apps (with men frequently sending pictures of their private parts), men say that finding a woman who clicks like on their portrait is a rare thing. This way of dating works for some, but for a practicing Christian, it leaves more than a little to be desired.

 

Pros and Cons of Using a Dating App

 

Now that we know what we are dealing with let's look at the pros and cons of using these new-age devices to try to find love.

 

The Pros

 

I find it hard to look at dating apps in general and find positive comments. This blog post gives a few reasons why dating apps might be preferable to meeting someone the old fashioned way and include things like an increased number of dating options, getting to know the necessary information about someone before you meet them, and being able to find a date without leaving your home.

 

While all of these are valid points, they don't all come without their downsides. Knowing information about someone in a single swipe is great until strangers show up at your door. An increased number of dating options makes for indecisive individuals who are unwilling to settle down, and dating without leaving your home sounds lovely – until you meet the person and they are nothing like the picture you have been chatting to for months.

 

The Cons

 

There are plenty of cons when it comes to meeting someone online, but I already outlined the biggest of them all above. Catfishing. There is no way to know that the person you are talking to is the person you will meet on your date. People used photographs from years ago when they were younger and fitter; they make up aliases and take advantage of the vulnerable. The online dating world is a bit of a cesspit, and using it opens yourself up to a whole unsavory world of potential bad choices.

 

However, It's Up to You!

 

Whether you choose to use a dating app or whether you decide to wait for Mr. or Mrs. right the traditional way – true love is to be treasured, no matter where you find it. If a dating app is what brought you together, then so be it, but you may want to make up a sweet story about how you met to tell the grandchildren...