eharmony’s New Study Finds People Optimistic About Dating
Contributed by: kellyseal on Friday, May 13 2022 @ 08:52 am
Last modified on Friday, May 13 2022 @ 09:03 am
Online dating company eharmony released a new study about dating in 2022, and despite the pandemic, found that most singles were optimistic about their prospects of finding love, and those in relationships were happy with their partners.
The Happiness Index study[*1] focused on how people are navigating dating and relationships in a post-pandemic world, and found that most singles - 76 percent – were optimistic about dating. The majority of those in relationships were satisfied, too, with 75 percent of U.S. couples saying they were happy in their relationships. Of those couples, 71 percent felt that having a romantic partner has positively affected their lives, and 55 percent said that their relationship has gotten stronger.
In addition to feeling more optimistic about their romantic lives, people are also gravitating away from alcohol after indulging during the pandemic. One in five people surveyed said they drank heavily during the lockdowns, and now, 74 percent of singles reported restricting their drinking in the last year. Twenty-one percent have considered not drinking at all.
This has led to a trend among daters of calling themselves “sober curious” and opting for dates that don’t involve drinking. In fact, 94 percent of daters said they’d be interested in dating someone who doesn’t drink. And being sober does bring couples together, with 35 percent saying they believe that being sober has had a positive impact on their relationships. (Twenty-nine percent of people in relationships say they don’t drink, and 29 percent also said their partners don’t drink.)
After two years of lockdowns, singles are also craving physical intimacy. Of those surveyed, 41 percent say their sex drive is higher than before the pandemic. And couples spent the pandemic mixing things up in the bedroom – with 40 percent saying they tried different positions, 33 percent saying they added massage to their foreplay, 28 percent started using dirty talk and 27 percent employed sex toys. Oral sex came in at number one with 41 percent of couples saying it kept their sex lives fun.
eharmony found that people are also prioritizing their mental health. About 73 percent of singles say they are more attracted to people working on personal growth, including therapy, and 56 percent said they are prioritizing self-care. And for couples, 70 percent found that therapy helped their relationship.
The “Happiness Index in America 2022” report was commissioned by eharmony and conducted by Harris Interactive in December last year. They surveyed 3,000 participants over 21 years of age who were either married, cohabiting, in a relationship, or were currently dating. Results were weighted to be nationally representative by age, gender, and region.
For more on the dating service which brought us this study, check out our eharmony review.