Setting up an online dating profile is like constructing a work of art. It’s all about wording, how you market yourself, and of course, because online dating is on par with flipping through a catalogue of people, what perfect photos you’ll use. You want to sell yourself as something great, someone original and unlike the rest, but according to a new study, everyone is the same on OkCupid, at least in the way they market themselves. And, the most common words used in online dating profiles actually adhered to a lot of gender stereotypes.
The study by hugequiz.com went through 97,000 dating profiles of straight men and women in 100 U.S. cities to see what things kept coming up over and over again. What they found was that women tend to stick to marketing their looks to potential dates, while guys try to use their occupation as a selling point. What this revealed is that despite it being 2015, hetero men and women are still adhering to the societal norms of days long ago. Women are not trying to meet a man by marketing her brain, ambition, or need to succeed, but through her looks, just as men are putting their wallets and their ability to be providers above everything else. I guess we haven’t evolved all that much after all, have we?
In addition to gender stereotypes running wild in these online dating profiles, here are other things the study found. It might even inspire you to revamp your own profile and focus on your other assets, like how you have an IQ of 210 and once tackled a grizzly bear with your bare hands.
1. Men Use The Word "Ladies" More Than Any Other Word
According to the findings, men really like to use the word “ladies,” more than any other word in their profiles. Why? I don’t know. Maybe because they like the “ladies,” or some guys are paying tribute to the Beastie Boys with, “Hey, ladies! Get funky!” But for whatever reason, men use that word most frequently.
2. Women Use The Word "Girly" The Most
For the women, the word that came up the most was “girly.” Again, I’m not sure why any adult women would use the word girly ― maybe to suggest that she’s not girly? ― in a dating profile, but the stats don’t lie, people.
3. Women Focus On Their Looks More Than Anything Else
Along with having “girly” in top place, women also use “sassy” (which is second in line), “curves,” “booty,” “chick,” and “heels,” to try to lure in men. The only word related to an occupation that comes up as far as usage goes is “nurse,” which of course is a female dominated field. But still, of all the words that are being tossed around as descriptors, only one occupation makes its appearance on the list of the most commonly used words for women.
4. Men Try To Sell Themselves Via Their Profession
Whereas women want to make it clear just how “girly” and “sassy” they are, men focus on their careers. After the most common word used in men’s profiles, “ladies,” the next five are “engineer,” “software,” “army,” “computers,” and “veteran,” respectively. Actually, when it comes to looks, the only word that popped up in the top 13 most used descriptors by guys is “beard.” No surprise there considering the beard trends is alive and well, and personally, I hope it stays that way forever.
5. Guys Still Think Being A Musician Is A Selling Point
Right behind “veteran” on the list of descriptors by men, are “musician” and “guitar,” because what woman doesn’t want to be sung to every night, right?
6. Women Think More Of The Long Term Than Men
Another word that’s used quite often in women’s online dating profiles is “husband.” Although it’s tenth down on the list, it’s still there as a friendly reminder that, perhaps, women do go into the online dating thing with different intentions than men.
7. Gamers Need Love, Too
At the bottom of the top 13 most used descriptors by men, is the word "gamer." Interestingly, "gamer" is used even less than "dude."
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