Online dating taking over the world

Natalie Barletta – Special to the Southern News

In 1998, a movie called “You’ve Got Mail” changed the way that we view the internet. Suddenly, two people who were complete and total strangers on the street, fell in love online. This movie was the first in movies that showed couples that have met online, and lived happily ever after.

Other movies with this sort of plot include “A Cinderella Story,” “The Social Network,” and “Catfish” (the movie and the television show). As we progress more and more into the digital age, this is becoming more and more the norm in our society, especially since the rise of social networking.  A third of recently married couples met online, and that number is likely to go up. The question is, can couples who meet online have a successful marriage versus a couple that didn’t meet online?

A new study from the University of Chicago shows that couples that met online have a lesser shot of divorce than couples that have met offline. The study also shows that people who have met online have a higher marital satisfaction than those who have met face to face.

Online dating can have it’s benefits. You can truly be yourself with someone, whereas if you meet them face to face, you may have a harder time in doing so. You are able to edit the things that you say, before you say them. Or type them, because there is no face to face contact.

However, one can argue that meeting online can have it’s dangers. Since the internet is free, everyone with a computer can go and make a profile. That includes married people, sociopaths, and pedophiles. You really don’t know who you’re talking to or who they really are. You only know the persona that they are putting out for the world to see. Sometimes, that person doesn’t measure up to the person that they make themselves to be, and of course you get hurt.

The question now remains is how to keep yourself safe from the dangers of online dating? Well for starters, if they refuse to skype with you, then that should be a red flag. Another is that if they move really fast, perhaps from strangers to lovers within a couple of days, that should be a warning. Another and perhaps the greatest is the refusal to meet in public. That’s a big sign because if they don’t want to meet you, and face you face to face, then there’s something shady behind their virtual eyes.

I think that online dating is a good thing, although I wouldn’t do it for myself. It’s a good way to go if you’re shy, because the pressure of being a suave dude is off, and you can actually relax. I don’t think that online dating is a good way of meeting a mate, because the danger risk is too high, and you really don’t know who you’re talking to.

For someone who is interested in meeting someone online, my advice is to guard as much personal information as possible. Some things to be aware of are people who quickly ask for information to talk on forums not related to where you’re talking to, asks you for money, claim to be recently widowed, and talk a lot about destiny or fate.

The dating on the internet is like the ocean. You can not predict its behaviour, however you can protect yourself from the dangers in any way that you can.