The University of Michigan did a sociology study and found that when it comes to online dating, there are 2 things to consider: Deal makers and deal breakers.
As people go through dating profiles, the decisions they make is whether to dismiss immediately or browse more closely. And the main deal breaker is having a online profile with no photo. Most such profiles get dismissed immediately. So if you want people to at least go through the rest of the profile, upload that great picture of yours.
Smoking was also on the list. Apparently, it led to a drop of interest 10-fold. So if you are a smoker, don’t reveal it on your dating profile. As it turns out, people have become much pickier these days.
Age seemed to be the biggest deal breaker especially for women. You would think this would have been an issue with men. Turns out overall, women were 400 times less likely to go through profiles of men who were much older than themselves. This was more prevalent in women who were in their 20s.
Height was also something most women considered. Most viewed profiles of men who were about 6 inches taller. Elizabeth Bruch, lead sociologist of the study thinks, men cared about height mainly because of the fear of being “rejected if they aren’t quite a bit taller than their potential mates.”
When it came to weight, men tended to ignore profiles of heavy-set women. On the other hand, some women seemed to prefer heavier-set men.
If the results are anything to go by, people seemed more lenient at the messaging stage and harshest at the browsing stage. During browsing, the main focus is the deal breakers; the instant elimination of all those who don’t fit the cut. However, Ken-Hou Lin, a sociologist at the University of Texas, Austin, says: “I expect positive selection to kick in at a later stage of the search.”