2026-09-19T03:25:10Zhttps://dspace.mit.edu/server/oai/requestoai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/338792026-06-10T15:42:12Zcom_1721.1_7582com_1721.1_7581col_1721.1_131022
Dan Ariely.
Frost, Jeana (Jeana H.), 1973-
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Program In Media Arts and Sciences
Program in Media Arts and Sciences (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
2008-02-12T16:48:58Z
2008-02-12T16:48:58Z
2005
2005
http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/33879
66464841
Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2005.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 107-113).
43% of American adults are single and many are looking for new social and romantic connections. At the same time, the Internet offers services to both research and contact other individuals. As a result, proactive computer savvy singles are logging on to find romantic partners. While the online dating industry advertises its success citing the large number of registered users, other evidence indicates broad dissatisfaction: the analysis of website behavior reveals that most users are inactive and experienced online daters state a preference for dating offline versus on. To account for this dissatisfaction, I locate decision-point failures. To improve the process, I propose and test an alternate model. Part 1 shows that acquiring more information - one of the perceived benefits of meeting online and reading profiles - can have negative effects, such as leading to less liking over time, while failing to make people really believe they know others better. The expectation that getting to know others more will lead to more liking, coupled with the fact that more information leads to less liking, means that online daters are frequently disappointed, causing them to leave dating sites, and to continue to prefer offline dating despite its drawbacks.
(cont.) Part 2 focuses on interventions to improve the online dating experience, making it more similar to life offline through the introduction of "virtual dates" where people "pre-meet" online before they meet face-to-face. In particular, these interventions are targeted at mitigating the overly positive expectations online daters who only read profiles have, bringing expectations for dates more in line with reality, leading to less disappointment- and possibly increased likelihood of finding a match.
by Jena H. Frost.
Ph.D.
113 leaves
eng
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582
Architecture. Program In Media Arts and Sciences
Impression formation in the information age : a study and design for online dating
Thesis
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<Abstract>43% of American adults are single and many are looking for new social and romantic connections. At the same time, the Internet offers services to both research and contact other individuals. As a result, proactive computer savvy singles are logging on to find romantic partners. While the online dating industry advertises its success citing the large number of registered users, other evidence indicates broad dissatisfaction: the analysis of website behavior reveals that most users are inactive and experienced online daters state a preference for dating offline versus on. To account for this dissatisfaction, I locate decision-point failures. To improve the process, I propose and test an alternate model. Part 1 shows that acquiring more information - one of the perceived benefits of meeting online and reading profiles - can have negative effects, such as leading to less liking over time, while failing to make people really believe they know others better. The expectation that getting to know others more will lead to more liking, coupled with the fact that more information leads to less liking, means that online daters are frequently disappointed, causing them to leave dating sites, and to continue to prefer offline dating despite its drawbacks.</Abstract>
<Abstract>(cont.) Part 2 focuses on interventions to improve the online dating experience, making it more similar to life offline through the introduction of "virtual dates" where people "pre-meet" online before they meet face-to-face. In particular, these interventions are targeted at mitigating the overly positive expectations online daters who only read profiles have, bringing expectations for dates more in line with reality, leading to less disappointment- and possibly increased likelihood of finding a match.</Abstract>
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