As the popularity of the online dating world grows, so does the curiosity of those who are on the fence about getting involved, or sometimes also those who are already immersed in it. One increasingly popular app called Tinder is used very regularly by young adults, especially those on college campuses. With this being, I was curious to see what the appeal was regarding this app, what people were using it for, and what they were hoping to get out of using Tinder. I conducted an interview with two people, one who identifies as female, the other male, to gain more of a perspective as to why this app is so popular. Here are the answers to the questions you may have had about the wildly popular dating and hookup app, Tinder:
Why did you decide to join Tinder?
*Brooke: “I mostly joined Tinder to pass time. Also, a lot of my friends had it too”.
*Aidan: “I had just broken up with my girlfriend and I wanted to use my newfound freedom so that I could be available and try out other relationships”.
What are you hoping to get out of the app?
Brooke: “I guess kind of just a friend with benefits type of thing. Not just someone to hook up with, but also someone to hang out with, if that makes sense”.
Aidan: “I was hoping to eventually find a new girlfriend, but also explore my sexuality”.
What’s the worst part of using the app?
Brooke: “You don’t really get a sense of what people’s personalities are like when you match with them. It’s all pretty much just based on looks”.
Aidan: “Sometimes when you match with people they don’t respond to your messages, and a lot of times people don’t have insightful bios that let me know if that person and I could be compatible personality wise. Also, I don’t want every single picture on a profile to be of you partying or drinking because personally, I think it’s unattractive”.
What do you most enjoy about the app?
Brooke: “It’s fun to get to meet new people, and it gives you an inside view on what people are looking for in partners”.
Aidan: “Potentially matching with people I might not meet otherwise. Another positive feature of Tinder is that it allows you to shoot your shot, and if you don’t match you don’t feel rejected like you would if you were talking to this person fact to face”.
What makes you want to “swipe right” on someone?
Brooke: “I always look for nice eyes and a nice smile. I also like it when people show humor in their pictures”.
Aidan: “I usually pick someone who has mellow pictures, similar interests in their bio, and also their ‘anthem’ listed in their bio”.
What usually makes you “swipe left” on someone?
Brooke: “Shirtless pics are definitely a no go, also when all their photos are group photos it can be hard to tell who the profile actually belongs to. It’s also annoying when the person doesn’t have a bio”.
Aidan: “If they seem like the ‘party type’ I’ll swipe left because it doesn’t fit with my religious beliefs or what I’m looking for on the app”.
*Names have been changed in order to keep interviewees anonymous
This popular dating app and its clever swiping system allows people to choose who they want to match with and potentially get to know based on their individual preferences. Overall, it seems that Tinder is a venue for meeting others for multiple reasons. Happy swiping everyone!