Hookups

No dating service gets more attention than Tinder these days. We hear from a lot of uptight journalists who worry that the app encourages hook-ups, and from finance experts wondering how the app will eventually monetize, and from discouraged daters telling their Tinder horror stories.

But today let’s take a look at the lighter side of Tinder. There’s a lot going on in the mobile app’s world, and plenty of it is downright hysterical.

First, a man posed as a cupcake on Tinder and wrote about his experience for Thrillist. “If there's one thing I've learned about heterosexual women,” he writes, “it's that they like men. They enjoy their company. They even marry them, sometimes. But they love cupcakes. And if there's another thing I know, it's that single women are on Tinder. So armed with those two pieces of knowledge, I set out to create a Tinder persona that no woman could resist: a man's face drawn on a cupcake.” The results of his experiment are hilarious.

Perhaps inspired by the cupcake, another man decided to join Tinder as a golden retriever named Hero. Hero, like the cupcake before him, proved to be a very popular match. The faux canine received 206 matches – 154 from men and 52 from women – after just four fun-filled days on the app.

If hilarious and heart-warming stories of baked goods and puppies aren’t your thing, try Humanitarians of Tinder. The sarcastic Tumblr ruthlessly rolls its eyes at the single do-gooders annoyingly capitalizing on their charity work (and maybe just regular travels) around the world. Warning: with all the facepalming you’re about to do, forehead bruising is a serious possibility.

Then there’s Tinderfessions, a Twitter account that's exactly what it sounds like. This is a prime destination for awkward, funny, and sorta depressing tales of Tinder gone wrong, mixed in with happy stories of Tinder love gone oh-so-right. “Only met one guy in person. haven’t left his place since our first date. this was over a month ago. #thankstinder #keeper.” writes a user named Kels. “All my pics are with my really good-looking friend and in my bio I say I’m him. #catfish,” admits Trent. Expect to feel a lot of ups and downs as you read this feed.

If you want to skip the ups and cut straight to the downs (the comical kind, that is) head on over to Tinderlines.com, where you’ll be treated to a collection of “the best, the worst, and the funniest Tinder pick-up lines.” Prepare yourself for bad jokes, snappy comebacks, sexual innuendo, mathematical equations, song lyrics, one-sided conversations, and a whole lotta laughter.

To find out more about this dating app you can read our review of Tinder.

Olympic athlete and heartthrob Ryan Lochte has been quoted saying he’s never had a one-night stand (even while people were hot and heavy on Tinder in Olympic Village). And he’s not alone. Most Americans – 53% - claim they’ve never had a one-night stand.

A new study by Dating Advice found that while most Americans haven’t participated in this type of casual sexual encounter, men were more likely to have participated than women. Sixty-four percent of women said they’ve never had a one-nighter compared to only 41% of men in Lochte’s camp, which means that traditional gender roles when it comes to sexuality are still at play in American society.

Age was a factor in the study. Americans aged 18 to 24 had a 25 percent higher likelihood of saying they’d never had a one-night stand than those aged 25 to 34. The age difference makes sense, as there might be more life experience or opportunities for casual encounters as you get older and break away from your college relationship, opting instead for clubs and bars with other singles.

Not surprisingly, those who are married are also least likely to have had a one-night stand, with 56% saying they had never. On the other hand, only 41% of divorcees have not had one-night stands, compared to 50% of singles who have never been married.

There seems to be a distinction between straight and gay Americans, with only 32% of gay people saying they’d never had a one-night stand compared to 54% of straight people. As for race, 45% of African Americans and 47% of Latinos have admitted to never having a one-night stand compared to 74% of Asians.

It seems there isn’t much difference among income earners, with about the same percentage of people earning less than $25,000 a year saying they’ve never had a one-night stand compared to those earning $125,000 or more at 56% and 55% respectively. However, those earning in the median range from $75,000-$99,000 were the most likely to have had a one-night stand, with only 49% saying they hadn’t.

As expected, the South and Midwest are more conservative, with 54% of their residents saying they’d never had a one-night stand compared to the Northeast at 50% and the West at 51%.

The study surveyed 1,080 respondents over the course of three weeks, balancing responses by age, gender, income, race, sexuality and other factors in order to accurately represent the U.S. population.

Professional online dating assistance has been around almost as long as online dating. For a fee, you can have someone write or “spruce up” your profile, craft email messages, or help you get more responses for your outreach efforts.

Now, a company called Personal Dating Assistants is taking this business to a whole new level. Men are hiring professional PUAs (pick-up artists) like the team at PDA to help write their online dating profiles and email messages. So if you’re a woman on sites like OkCupid or dating apps like Tinder, that cute guy might not be as clever as you think. A professional could have written that flirtatious email from your online match to help him get laid.

Personal Dating Assistants has been making headlines around the web for offering this new service, but I’m sure they aren’t the only ones marketing PUA business. The PDA team helps daters choose photos, ghostwrite messages, and even scout for attractive women, depending on their physical preferences (i.e. blondes or brunettes?).

The company website explains it like this: “Dating online for men is more than just a numbers game. Locating, and attracting beautiful women is also a fiercely competitive sport, and requires a significant time commitment if you want real results. To win dates regularly, a typical approach isn’t gonna cut it.  For that, you need an industrial strength solution."

This is where PDA comes in, promising to “play the online dating game.” They offer to spruce up your profile and converse with matches (“a la Cyrano de Bergerac”) until the object of your affection discloses her contact information.

The service boasts a high response rate for their creative efforts, but it’s not cheap. Packages range from $380 per month (“Weekend Casanova”) to $1520 per month (“International Playboy”). The company backs its efforts by stating on the site: "After our pimping process, you will be amongst the top tier of men online for response rate %, standing out amid the crowds of commoners.”

The appeal to men is tempting, if for no other reason than they are tired of sending out a disproportionate number of emails to women on online dating sites. This could save them a lot of time and trouble. On the other hand, women aren’t really getting a fair deal. After all, they might think they’re chatting with a charming, likeable and creative guy, but then what happens when they meet in person? And will this be yet another hurdle for women to jump in the online dating game, discerning who is real and who might just be using a PUA service to lure them in?

Dating takes time and requires effort. Cheating the system won’t work in the long run, so guys – I suggest saving your money and using it for your dates.

I've met a lot of very attractive women who have come through a divorce or break-up looking to meet someone new. The problem? The men who are their ages (in their 40s and 50s) seem to want to date younger women only.

Many women wonder why this is. After all, they aren't looking at only younger men. It doesn't seem fair, does it?

There is an element of truth to this notion: many men do prefer to date younger women, and we see this reflected in TV shows and movies. It's not a problem for a man to date someone half his age, and in fact it's expected. Maybe it's due to biology, or maybe he just wants to ignore his own aging process.

There's also a certain amount of relief in dating a younger woman because she likely doesn't have the baggage that an older woman does. Chances are he looks for simplicity above all else - a woman who has no children, not much debt, or no messy break-up that has taken a toll on her psyche and finances.

So then we wonder - is it possible to find older men who are interested in women their own age?

Absolutely. Just because you've noticed a pattern in your own life or among your friends (or even in a Hollywood movie) doesn't mean that it is true for everyone. There are many single men in the world, and a lot of them enjoy the company of women their own age. You just have to know where to look and what to look for.

First of all, it might be time to refresh your online dating profile. Make sure you are focusing on what you want to bring into your life, not on what has happened in the past. Mention your interests, your career, or whatever makes you happy - and let that be the tone with which you craft your profile. Men can pick up on the energy and tone a woman sends from a profile or a first message. It's important to keep it positive so you can attract as many men as possible.

Second, I would suggest picking a new dating site. OkCupid and PlentyofFish are great for people looking for something casual (i.e. younger), but if you're looking for an emotional connection, it's better to go with a paid site like eHarmony or Match. OurTime is a good niche option specifically for older daters, so you know that your dates won't discount you because of your age.

Third, keep an open mind about the possibilities open to you right now. Say yes to more men that you might not normally consider, just to see what dating someone new is like. Allow yourself a little more fun in the dating process - it doesn't have to be so focused on the end result. It's a journey, after all.

Match.com's Singles in America study, now in its fourth year, examines the attitudes and behaviors of over 5,300 American singles from all walks of life in order to get a glimpse into how love and relationships are viewed today.

"U.S. singles most often have sex at night, don't want to know their partner's sexual history, have trouble deciding when to have sex with a new dating partner, and overall just want more sex," says Dr. Justin R. Garcia, PhD., Scientific Advisor at Match.com. "But why?"

That's the million-dollar question, one of the many questions Match.com tried to answer in the latest Singles in America study. A survey of what it means to be single would be incomplete without an examination of what it means to be single and sexual, because whether you're a new couple or have been married for half a century, sex is an important ingredient in almost every romantic relationship.

Research has shown that sexual satisfaction influences a huge range of outcomes, from one's happiness, to one's health, to the likelihood of a breakup. So what's the state of sexuality in America today? Match.com says:

• Singles want more sex. We probably didn't need a study to tell us that, but we got one anyway. 68% of single men and 57% of single women say they want more sex in 2014, although it may still be less sex than you're expecting. Most singles ideally would like to have sex 2 to 3 times per week - only 15% of single men 12% of single women would ideally have sex every day.
• We are all really confused about when we "should" have sex. Everyone is stressed out about when to take a new relationship to the next step. Nearly half of singles think it's only okay to have sex with a new partner once they've reached the 6th date. Men, on average, tend to count the number of dates (and observe totally idiosyncratic rules about which number it's appropriate to have sex on). Women, on the other hand, tend to rely on relationship milestones - such as a clear sign of commitment or exclusivity - to mark when it's okay to make things sexual.
• Some of us are keeping our number under wraps, but it's fewer than you might expect. 21% of women and 23% of men admit to altering their number of sexual partners (in either direction) when asked about it. Nearly half singles of both genders simply say they've don't want to know their partner's sexual history at all.
• Television is totally killing the vibe. 77% of men and 82% of women consider the TV a huge turn-off. In fact, it's the #2 sexual turn-off for women and the #1 sexual turn-off for men. Why? Because TV is hugely distracting, and satisfying sex doesn't happen when your attention is focused elsewhere.

The winter Olympics in Sochi this year may get a little cold - but not for the athletes. According to various reports, they are looking for a little love and warmth using mobile dating app Tinder.

The dating app has become a popular activity to try during down time in Olympic Village where the athletes congregate. The app is location-based so you can find other singles in the hotels next to yours - no matter what country they represent.

The app works easily and has taken off in the U.S. All that is required is a Facebook account, which populates your Tinder profile with photos, age, and location details. Other Tinder users can scroll through photos - swiping right for yes and left for no. When two people match (that is, they both swipe right), they are put in touch with each other and can message quickly.

According to Today.com, the three American skiers who swept the medals in slopestyle last Thursday, Joss Christensen, Gus Kenworthy and Nick Goepper, all admitted to being on Tinder. But does all this activity take away from their concentration on the games?

Kenworthy notes: "For me it's definitely more the game aspect that's fun,'' he said. "Who you think's hot, see if they do, too. I'm not sure how much further it goes than that for me."

Tinder founder Sean Rad told the Wall Street Journal that they noticed a 400% day-on-day increase in new users since the start of the Olympics. Apparently the athletes are starting a trend among young daters who might not have used the app previously.

Tinder however is primarily used by Americans in the Olympic Village, so there's not much hope of hooking up with someone from another team. Christensen admits it's "a little weird" to see his fellow teammates on Tinder. Goepper however keeps his options open and swipes right more often than not, so he's had some success during the games. "I've gotten quite a few notifications that say: 'this person wants to kiss you'," he tells Today.com.

And what about members of the media who are in Sochi and on Tinder? According to some athletes, they don't want to engage with any media employees over Tinder, and prefer to stick with the other athletes. But that doesn't mean that young media employees are doing the same - they prefer to meet athletes, American or otherwise.

The Olympics have a history of hook-ups between athletes that go on behind the scenes, so it's no wonder that Tinder plays into the lore so well. So the question is - what will be the dating app of choice for the summer 2016 games?