[imagesource: Getty Images]

According to some people dotted around the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic has actually improved the dating scene.

In the midst of the pandemic, with everyone locked into their own thoughts, a mass slow-down and inventory-taking happened, with a lot of people suddenly keen to self-reflect and reprioritise.

This has affected the way people seek out their partners, too, which brings us to Mashable‘s top dating trends for 2022.

OkCupid’s associate director of global communications, Michael Kaye, says that “what was important to us two, three years ago simply isn’t any more”:

Considering all we’ve been through in the past two years even beyond the pandemic — like the threat to reproductive rights — we’re less concerned about superficial qualities like looks, and more concerned about values like where a date stands on climate change, Kaye explained.

Dating coach and eharmony relationship expert Laurel House also describes this shift to what really matters as “prioridating”.

One of the single priorities with potential partners that House has found these days is safety, and that can be physically, emotionally, or financially.

Additionally, what people think of as chemistry is also shifting, with shallow desires being replaced with emotional maturity:

More singles (83 percent) want an emotionally mature partner rather than someone physically attractive (78 percent) according to [Match’s latest Singles in America survey of 5,000 Americans aged 18 to 75].

“Many [daters] are looking for someone who inspires them to be their best selves,” Kaye said. “Someone they are proud to date. It’s less about superficial characteristics and more about those deeper, more meaningful traits.”

People dating in 2022 are also seeing the value in vulnerability, openness, mindfulness, and an increase in deeper communication:

“People are having these real scary — historically scary — conversations,” House said.

“Now it’s not scary because now it’s like, ‘Well, I know me. I know my needs. I’m confidently, vulnerably, unapologetically aware of my needs.'”

This trend of being honest about what you want has been referred to as “hardballing” by Hinge’s director of relationship science, Logan Ury.

Meanwhile, mindfulness has become a key to one’s heart, too:

If your priority is safety, for example, and someone makes fun of a vulnerability, check in at that moment. House modeled how the thought process can look: “Does that make me feel safe? It doesn’t. OK, well, what am I going to do with that information? Either I’m going to say ‘thank you, goodbye,'” she said, “or I’m going to voice my priority and make it clear what my priority is.”

Otherwise, virtual dates are still a thing, with more and more people feeling rather protective of their time.

“People dating in 2024 are also seeing the value in vulnerability, openness, mindfulness, and an increase in deeper communication”

There’s also a move towards sober (curious) dating, where people are less interested in getting crunk with a new person to form a connection and are rather trying out the sober, present route.

In fact, an astonishing 94% of people have said that “they’d be interested in someone who doesn’t drink at all”.

Anyway, the good news is that the pandemic has helped us be slower and more intentional with dating, which House believes can only lead to longer relationships in the future.

I guess I’ll redownload Tinder, then?

[source:mashable]