The Pros and Cons of Online Relationships

To understand the “why” question when discussing an addiction to online relationships one must take a step back and look at the information that is pounded into our brains. Studies have shown that 35% of relationships start online. That being said, the rest of the relationships are categorized as 22% from work, 19% through friends, and the rest through things like church and bars.

            Continuing to look at statistics of online relationships studies have shown that of the people who were surveyed, who were divorced, 7.67% of them had been from offline relationships. Whereas a mere 5.96% of them began with online relationships. That’s how the relationships and marriages end, how they begin and better yet, how happy the participants are is another question. Of a study of marriages, couples rated their satisfaction. Online relationships had a rating of 5.64 whereas offline relationships had a rating of 5.48.

Sitting back and staring these facts in the face gives you a perspective to look at and consider. It is easy to see how someone gets sucked into the online dating world when there are so many success stories, and the only ones we ever get to see on TV and on online ads are the success stories of them. People get so caught up in the thought of it being mostly a success and forget the fact that there are many, many unhappy endings as well.

Catchy phrases and slogans from different websites like E-Harmony’s “Beat the odds, bet on love” or Match.com’s “Make love happen” subconsciously make you believe every story is a good one because that’s all that they broadcast.

The gate is opening wider as the internet expands and as people become more comfortable with the online world. This can already be shown in a chart showing opinions of online dating from 2005 to 2013, the results change dramatically.

What isn’t being considered is the fact that ten percent of online daters are sex offenders. This means that if you were to go and meet one hundred people you met online, at least ten of them would be sex offenders. We don’t think about how studies have shown that most men lie about their age, income, and height whereas women lie about their weight, height, and age. We teach kids about cyber dangers at a young age but no one is teaching adults that it can be just as dangerous.


Citations:

1. 5 facts about online dating. (2015). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/04/20/5-facts-about-online-dating/

2. 35 Characteristics of a Relationship Addict | Growthtrac Marriage. (2005). Retrieved February 22, 2016, from http://www.growthtrac.com/relationship-addict/?gclid=CjwKEAiA0ZC2BRDpo_Pym8m-4n4SJAB5Bn4xYa5BlI6QjTCnPXfEkcT0_3P75JxzTUo-Xs9RCrq5JhoCXq_w_wcB#.Vsn7svkrLIV

3. Online Dating & Relationships. (2013). Retrieved February 22, 2016, from http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/10/21/online-dating-relationships/