What Economics Can Teach You About Online Dating
Contributed by: ElyseRomano on Thursday, December 03 2015 @ 09:07 am
Last modified on
Remember how much you hated your Econ class in high school? Now would be a good time to dig up your old notes. It turns out economics can teach you about online dating.
Paul Oyer, an economics proessor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and author of Everything I Ever Needed to Know about Economics I Learned from Online Dating[*1] , says the marketplace of romantic partners functions a lot like any other marketplace. Throw in the fact that Oyer met his match online and, well... he may be onto something.
How exactly is online dating like economics? It starts with the market. An online dating site with more members is better than one with fewer, as you'll be exposed to more options over time and have a better chance of meeting someone who suits you. This, explains Oyer, is called a “thick market.” More options means greater efficiency and a greater chance of finding what you need.
You could argue that the thick market approach means niche dating sites are a bad bet, but Oyer says it's not always the case. If you're a specialist dater – someone with a serious dealbreaker requirement – your personal thick market is a site targeted to that criteria. But take note, specialists: niche sites are a significantly more viable option in densely populated areas, where there is a larger pool of people who meet your requirements.
Here's one thing that might surprise you: Oyer says lying in an online dating profile makes economic sense. “Economists think of lying as a rational thing to increase utility, or happiness,” he explains[*2] . “Where parties’ interests aren’t completely aligned, we expect some people will misrepresent the truth.”
In other words, lying while online dating is a logcial strategy to try to increase the number of responses your profile gets. And even if you're completely honest, you should expect that your competition (or your dates) are twisting the truth.
Before you go swapping your photos for a professional model's, Oyer adds that the utility of lying has its limits. You cannot stretch the truth beyond belief, because when it's obvious that you're faking it, people will be less likely to believe you in the future. Dishonesty isn't always the best policy.
Oyer also weighs on in on the pickiness problem of online daters. He calls it “romantic unemployment” - a condition inspired by a type of search theory, in which people cannot find exactly what they want, even if it exists, because the act of searching is too costly. Singles hold out for better and better dates, like a company holds out for better and better job candidates, both potentially passing up good matches along the way.
Ultimately, Oyer says, “economics is the study of scarcity.” When it comes to online dating, the scarce resource is time. It doesn't pay to be too choosy. You can try to keep trading up, but according to search theory, there's a point where it's no longer worth the trouble.