A study confirms what has long been known: online dating causes greater inequality within societies. What is new is the recent media attention.
In his book The World in 2050, published in 2022, Hamisch McRae highlights the “tendency since the 1980s, particularly in America, for young people to choose their life partners from similar education and income groups.”
It takes little thought to realize that inequality increases when high earners mate.
The rise of online dating seems to be exacerbating this dynamic. McRae cites studies from 2019 and 2014 based on U.S. data.
Digital revolution has many effects
The author’s main point is that “technology has consequences far beyond the creation and destruction of certain types of jobs.”
He goes on to say that “it may well turn out that the more important impact of the communications revolution on human behavior is not how people shop or vote, but how they choose their life partners!”
Media interest in growing inequality in the digital society
In mid-September 2024, suddenly many media outlets are reporting on how online dating is leading to relationships and marriages between people who are more alike. The reason?
A new study concludes that about half of the increase in income inequality between 1980 and 2020 is due to this digitally driven relationship formation.
Media often discover most important news late
It's a good thing that the media focus on the most important issues, such as rising inequality in the digital society ... even if it's actually old news that can already be found in books.
This begs the question of why the media are often very late in picking up on the most significant news; think, for example, of how many media have missed the seriousness of climate change, the impact of globalization or... the consequences of digitization for a very long time. (db)
Photo Santeri Viinamäki Creative Commons
Sources
Fortune, Online dating lets us look for similar education levels, adding to income inequality, 14 September 2024 | also provides link to original study
Tech Story, A Closer Look: How Online Dating Increases U.S. Income Inequality, 16 September 2024
Tech Story, Online Dating Contributed to the Rise of U.S. Income Inequality, Study Finds, 17 September 2024
Toronto Sun, Online dating caused a rise in U.S. income inequality, research paper shows, 14 September 2024
