Researchers at OkCupid conducted a study and found that when a woman sent the first message to one of her matches about 30% of those matches resulted in dates. Comparatively, the study found that when men sent the first message, only about 10% of the matches resulted in dates. However, the study found that men overwhelmingly sent more first messages than women did. Whitney Wolfe, the founder of the dating app, Bumble, has described this disconnect in dating culture saying that “Women have been very much trained to sit back and let men come to them.”
But if it works, why are so many women hesitant to make the first move? For my final paper, I am interviewing four women between the ages of 18 and 25 about how they use Bumble. Bumble challenges the traditional dating gender roles by requiring women to send the first message. I am focusing on how these women feel about being able to send the first message, their interactions with matches, and how they feel Bumble compares to other dating apps. By looking at these factors, I will be able to get a better picture of how well Bumble meets their needs in today’s dating culture. My theory is that the women will enjoy the increased power from being able to initiate the match, but that there may be conflict from changing the traditional dating gender roles.
Dating is a very personal and emotional experience. To conduct my research, I will be asking them questions about their dating habits and experiences as well as observing them using the Bumble app. Users swipe left or right on a profile to indicate interest or to decline the person. Users can also click on the profile to see more photos and read their short bio. I will be observing them swiping through various profiles and then sending the messages. My observations are limited by time constraints so I am only able to observe them interacting with a limited number of matches. And if the matches do result in a date I would not be able to observe them interacting in real life because that would be a little creepy. So for that aspect, I am limited by asking them follow up questions about the experience.
