For those of you who aren’t familiar with ‘tindering’, you are missing out! It is the act of swiping through different profiles of the opposite sex to ultimately achieve a match. This app was launched in America last year and uses your Facebook profile to flick through boys within a certain radius where you can view a few pictures of them, along with your mutual friends and interests. It is as simple as swiping left if they don’t take your fancy and right if they do, if they feel the same then you are ‘matched’ and you can start a conversation. But, how has everyone been so drawn in by this modern ‘Hot or Not’ app? And can people really find love at first swipe?
Scientifically, the satisfaction of getting a match reinforces you to continue looking for more. It is genuinely addictive and ‘tindering’ currently brings excitement to many a student because you can find potential dates without even having to get dressed! There is something extremely therapeutic about doing your daily swipe through every morning and night, hopeful that you may come across a Ryan Gosling lookalike who lives only a few miles away.
The beauty of Tinder is stumbling upon people that you know or have secretly lusted after for a while. Matching with someone that you’ve seen on the top floor of Timepiece every week but have never had the courage to go over to gives us hope that a virtual match could eventually translate into a real life spark. You can even set friends up on Tinder, playing cupid for that couple you’ve always wanted to see together. It is hardly surprising that Tinder has taken Exeter by storm – since it’s launch in 2012, it has made over 100 million matches and resulted in 50 marriage proposals around the world!
What is the point of going out and finding guys when there is so much potential just waiting to be found virtually? Well, it is awkward actually seeing that person you have had a flirtatious conversation with the night before. A friend of mine had a group of boys laugh at her whilst in the library, and although the days of ‘Spotted’ are behind us, she still was afraid about whether her skirt was tucked into her pants as she walked past them. On returning to Tinder, she realised that her housemates had decided to chat to one of these boys for her by crudely commenting on a picture of him and an Olympic torch…
Whether you join it to bag yourself a new man, be a matchmaker or as a bit of fun, it is lighthearted and the feeling of getting a new match will never get old. So, if you haven’t got Tinder already you must try it. But, you have been warned, it is extremely addictive and once you have it, you will not be able to stop swiping!
Remember to always be safe and responsible when chatting to strangers via social media. Never give out personal details unless you know the person face-to-face.
Check out more ‘Love and Relationships Apps’ here.
Picture Credits – Hothardware.com, memeinside.com