Tinder: Differences from Culture to Culture By: Lauren Rojas-Castillo
Jan 15, 2016
Tinder: Differences from Culture to Culture
By: Lauren Rojas-Castillo
At A Glance● Ranked by Forbes as one
of the top 5 dating applications of 2015
● Focus: “A way to connect with new and interesting people around you”
● Average user spends 77 minutes/day on application.
Objective● To look at communication
norms of college students studying abroad on the dating application Tinder™, and whether they perceive those norms differ from culture to culture.
● Direct vs. Indirect communication
Method● Quantitative Research Method
● Sent out a 9 question survey to be completed by at least 25 students abroad asking them anonymously about their usage of the application, and their experiences with other cultures while using the application.
● Ideal candidates: Those who had downloaded the application before studying abroad in order for them to clearly see the differences in their culture on the app compared to other cultures.
Results ● 73% had downloaded
the application prior to going abroad
● 27% downloaded the application once they arrived in their study abroad country
Results● 46% downloaded the
app “Just for fun”
● 38.5% downloaded the app for “Casual” purposes
● 30.8% downloaded the app for “Social” purposes
● 30.8% downloaded the app for ‘Long-term” purposes
Results ● 7.7% use Tinder™ “Almost everyday”
● 42.3% use Tinder™ “Several times a week”
● 11.5% use Tinder™ “About once a week”
● 15.4% use Tinder™ “Several times a month”
● 3.9% use Tinder™ “About once a month”
● 11.5% use Tinder™ “Less than once a month”
● 7.7% use Tinder™ “Never”
Results
● 73% have met someone off Tinder™
● 26.92% have not met someone off Tinder™
Results● 30% have met someone
off of the app “Just for fun”
● 55% have met someone off of the app for “Casual” purposes
● 25% have met someone off of the app for “Social” purposes
● 25% have met someone off of the app for ‘Long-term” purposes
Results● 8% have only met
someone off of the app from Home
● 32% have only met someone off of the app from their abroad country
● 36% have met someone off of the app from both home and their abroad country
● 24% have not met someone off of the app
Results ● 76.92% have noticed that
certain countries are more aggressive and/or more straightforward than others
● 15.38% have not noticed that certain countries are more aggressive and/or more straightforward than others
● 7.69% saw no difference
Results ● Most Aggressive/
Straightforward: ● 75% stated France was the
most Aggressive/ Straightforward
● 72% stated Italy ● 64.7% stated Spain
● Somewhat Aggressive/ Straightforward
● 62.5% stated Ireland ● 47.3% stated England● 43.75 stated Germany
Advice From Participants ● “Dont…”
● “So much strange.”
● “I downloaded it to meet locals to show me parts of London you wouldn’t know unless you lived here. Not in it for dating/hook-up purposes. I was very mistaken.”
● “Be smart! Only meet up with people in a public place! Met a guy off Tinder in France and the first thing he did was grab my ass. We were just meeting up for lunch.”
Why is this important?● Through this survey I was able
to see how different countries and cultures are perceived. There was a commonality amongst many of the responses in regards to which countries were perceived to be more direct (straightforward and/or aggressive) than others.
● France was ranked as the most aggressive/ straightforward out of the countries listed.