Love the one you…live with? Desperate times call for desperate measures — and lonely singles found themselves reaching for familiarity — and their platonic roommates during quarantine.
Match released their 10th annual survey and in addition to revealing the ways 2020 has transformed the whole dating thing in general, the findings say 71 per cent of singles spent quarantine without sex — but one in four banged their ‘platonic’ roommate. The annual Singles in America study rounding up 50,000 singles across the US offered some specific 2020 insights on how the romantically unattached navigated dating during the global pandemic.
The new survey released Tuesday by the online dating company highlighted some trends that started picking up before the pandemic even hit. It turns out singles these days are into the slow burn, value meaningful connections and are getting clearer on their own approaches to love.
“Today’s singles want to know who you are, where you’re headed financially, and what you expect from a possible partnership. And with the rise of video dating — a new stage in the courtship process — singles are saving time, money, and kissing fewer frogs,” says Dr. Helen Fisher, Match’s chief scientific advisor, in the press release. She also notes that singles these days seem to be more into the idea of an actual relationship over casual dating.
Meaningful conversations and honesty are trending in 2020 dating
According to the Match survey, 69 per cent of these singles say they’re more honest in interactions with potential suitors — with 63 per cent of them putting more effort into getting to know potential partners. Instead of casting a wide net, it seems those sniffing out a connection are being much more intentional when engaging with potential matches.
Viewpoints matter and the ability to defend them is sexy to 44 per cent of Gen Z and 36 per cent of Millennials surveyed.
When it comes to in-person dating, two-thirds of the participants said they were ready to meet in real life — though 36 per cent of these singles are being more thoughtful about their selection process for both the who and where of the date (23 per cent).
Single women (25 per cent) seem to be more concerned about the social distancing practices of their potential dates than dudes (16 per cent). The surveyed females are also being more mindful about who they plan on sharing physical touch with — including kissing.
Related: Why digital dating is garbage and doing nothing for my actual love life.
Social politics are sexy and political views matter to singles looking to connect
Tracking this annual survey over the last three years, it turns out that there’s a 25 per cent increase of singles who believe alignment in political beliefs is important. In fact, the survey suggests it’s by the second date nearly half of the study wants to know where their potential lover’s political views are at. Viewpoints matter and the ability to defend them is sexy to 44 per cent of Gen Z and 36 per cent of Millennials surveyed.
It’s also the more youthful generations who want to know where their dates stand on the Black Lives Matter movement with 59 per cent of singles overall caring about this — with 74 per cent of them being Gen Z and 66 per cent being Millennials.
We’ve talked about how Millennials are having sex less than any other generation in history — and this pandemic is doing nothing to help change that stat. Of the 29 per cent of singles who did end up getting it on during lockdown, 5 per cent had sex with two partners and 16 per cent stuck to one lover.
Don’t worry though, 16 per cent of overall singles owned up to masturbating more frequently. After all, we do what we have to do to survive.
Related: Defunding the police: What it could mean for mental health in Canada.
