It’s a (Mis)match: Practices and Perceptions of University Students About Online Dating

Dating and traditional matchmaking practices have now been replaced by the transient and evolving landscape of online dating. Applications such as Bumble, Hinge, and Tinder strive to outdo each other in introducing features and design elements to cater to user needs. However, the utilisation of these apps differs significantly from how individuals engage with other interpersonal computer-mediated interactions, such as social media platforms. Through this study, we set to understand the practices and perceptions of university-going students regarding online dating platforms and how they can be used to model effective interactions. The user study employs a mixed-method approach, including an online survey with 72 respondents and 11 semi-structured interviews. The paper also encompasses a competitive study where the researchers compared existing dating platforms based on a set of parameters.