Americans growing more comfortable with online dating

Johannesburg – A new survey has found that Americans are growing more comfortable with online dating, with many finding a spouse or partner online.

The Pew Research Centre found 11 percent of internet users – or some 9 percent of all American adults – said that they have personally used an online dating site, News24 reported.

That is a sharp increase from 2008, when just 3 percent of American adults had used online dating sites, Pew said.

The survey found 66 percent of those who used online sites or apps have gone on a date with someone they met through one of these services.

And 23 percent of online daters have married or begun a long-term relationship with someone they met through a dating site or app, Pew found.

Pew researchers said Americans’ attitudes about online dating have dramatically changed since it first began studying the subject in 2005.

The survey found 59 percent of internet users agreed with the statement that “online dating is a good way to meet people”, compared with 44 percent in 2005.

And 53 percent of the group agreed that “online dating allows people to find a better match for themselves because they can get to know a lot more people”, up from 47 percent in 2005.

Pew found 21 percent of internet users claimed that people who use online dating sites are “desperate”, down from 29 percent in 2005.

Around a third, or 32 percent online adults, said online dating keeps people from settling down by giving them more options to meet people.