RSVP no longer means saying whether or not you attend an event.
In fact, when it comes to dating you will find dating sites like RSVP, eHarmony, Plenty of Fish or Tinder are just some of the first places singles head to rather than the local pub or club.
A recent study by researchers at Queensland University of Technology shows dating preferences change as you age, and so does the way you date.
One of the researchers, QUT behavioural economist Stephen Whyte, told Starts at 60 that through the research he found there were more older online daters than initially thought.
“More Gen X and Baby Boomers are surprisingly using online dating,” Steven said.
He said fifteen years ago there was a social stigma, but now apps have made it accessible, providing hundreds of candidates in real time.”
Online dating also helped break down dating barriers such as shyness, financial cost, cultural issues and location.
“It is changing the way people find a connection.”
Stephen also said it meant singles could feel less pressure to find someone and focus instead on finding ‘the one’.
Describing being in a bar in the 80s or 90s a decision had to be made then and there if you were interested in a particular person.
“Online you don’t have to make that decision.”
Instead he said there was no stress or anxiety in taking your time making decisions, allowing for more information being available, and being able to make more informed choices in a dating partner.
“It allows more information to make a better match.”
Stephen conducted the study titled Things change with age; Educational Assortment in online dating with Professor Benno Torgler.
Their research was completed using data provided by online dating website RSVP, and offered almost 42,000 members.
The findings have now been published in an international journal Personality and Individual Differences.
Stephen said the core of the paper investigated what people looked for when choosing a partner, which usually came down to someone with similar characteristics; either in looks, lifestyle or education.
However, they found while younger, higher educated singles looked for someone the same, education became less important as people got older.
There were also clear differences between males and females; which had older women looking more for a companion while males sought a partner to fill a more exclusive caretaker role.
When it came to finding out the real truth through online dating Stephen said it was common for little while lies; with men often saying they are taller and women saying they are lighter; but those serious about dating don’t tell big porkies.
“They are pretty honest in how they behave
“You can’t get away with bigger lies.”
However, there are those out there who will try.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has investigating online scammers who use dating sites and romance services as a feeding ground.
In 2013 alone, they report that Australians lost $25.3 million to shysters, reporting that they’d received 2770 complaints, with more than 400 people saying they’d lost in excess of $10,000.
ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard warned that scammers can go to great lengths to gain your trust, spending months and even years building a relationship with you.
“Once your defenses are lowered, they spin an elaborate tale about how they need your financial help with a crisis, such as being ill or stranded, and ask for money,” she warned.
It’s no news to Starts At 60 that over 60’s are using cyber tools more and more to keep in touch.
Our readership and engagement shows that.
And with younger audiences introducing more and more technology into the lives of their parents and grandparents as a way of keeping in touch, it is a trend that will continue.