With Internet use higher than ever and new online dating services created on a daily basis, it is no wonder that college students are increasingly signing on to these sites.
The main question is "Why join an online dating service when Florida State is such a large place overflowing with new people to meet?"
Several students would argue that despite the outrageous amount of students present, the chance of meeting someone with similar interests is minimal.
"I just feel like, there being so many people here at FSU, I can't really meet anyone that I'm into," FSU junior Jennifer Brown stated. "I've never met anyone on the Internet or signed up for a dating service, but I definitely know people that have and are in long term relationships because of it."
Three students were willing to come forward and talk about the effects online dating had on them, but all preferred to remain anonymous.
One student, originally from Tampa and a current History major, explained that online dating has been quite a positive experience.
"Online dating has provided me with the ability to talk to the opposite sex in a way I did not think possible," one student said. "It's a lot easier, and less risky, for me to talk to someone online. The fear of rejection is not the same."
For this student in particular, there was a connection made with someone over the Internet site Tickle. The two had been conversing via email and, after numerous e-mails, decided it was time to meet in person.
After a successful dinner date, the pair decided that they had clicked and continued a serious relationship for the following 15 months.
Despite this success story, there remain a multitude of risks when meeting someone online. With no hard evidence that this person is indeed who they claim to be, it is tough to really know who will be sitting across the table at the restaurant.
Perhaps the person is mentally unstable or not an attractive brunette, but a 300-pound man named Jim.
Aside from Web sites such as Match.com, JDate, Tickle, Yahoo! Personals and Great Expectations, the Internet offers other ways for college students to meet online. Popular sites such as MySpace and Facebook allow people to access a lot of personal information, which most agree is not always a good thing.
Many students are familiar with the idea of "poking," or sending a message to express interest.
However, not everyone scoffs at the idea of meeting someone through a friend on Facebook, or through the site in general.
The second student to comment on the issue of meeting someone online was informative regarding the experience.
This student, a senior majoring in Exercise Science, found a companion through Facebook. After being poked several times â€" in which one individual person presses a button to inform another they are interested in them â€" the two of them began to message each other.
"I got frustrated with the poking, so I sent a message saying, "Listen I think you're cute. Enough with the poking, just talk to me,"" the student commented.
Because of the distance between the two, they found that the Internet, and soon the phone, would be the only way to really get to know each other.
How was it that this person from another city was able to find this student? Simple.
When online with a site like Facebook or Myspace, it is entirely possible to search through friends of friends. This person was an FSU alumni, and while searching through people who went to FSU â€" bingo.
After contacting the student and speaking via e-mail and the phone, as well as the Webcam for about a month, they decided to meet in Orlando.
"When people heard I was going to meet someone in Orlando from the Internet, alone, there was a great deal of concern," the student said. "For some reason, I wasn't afraid. I felt like, regardless of the fact we hadn't met, there was hardly any danger. You get to know someone through phone conversations, and get to feel comfortable. Well, at least that's how it went for me."
As of now, the couple is doing great. Instead of just talking, they have successfully graduated to a real relationship â€" all thanks to a Web site.
Online dating is not always this successful. Despite the lower risk of rejection, it does still exist.
The third student that came forward had a short but typical online dating experience.
It began with a simple e-mail expressing interest and attraction that turned into a "We should do dinner sometime."
Last weekend the student, soon to be a part of the nursing school, went to meet their online match for dinner. The student was prepared to meet someone they believed they had a lot in common with, but no one showed up to meet them at the restaurant and no one called.
According to www.libertonline.com, two professors from Miami University; Jessica E.Donn, MA; and Richard C. Sherman, PhD; conducted a study in Oxford, Ohio, to determine the amount of college students who participate in online dating.
The researchers conducted the study to "examine young adults' attitudes and practices about using the Internet to facilitate the formation of intimate relationships."
According to published findings, 235 undergraduates and 76 PhD students were surveyed about their attitudes toward and use of the Internet in forming relationships. More graduate students than undergraduates reported meeting someone in person whom they had first met on the Internet, and had both thought about and taken steps to meet a friend or mate on the Internet. Graduate students also expressed more positive views of using the Internet to form relationships.
Internet Dating & Online Dating
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