It’s no surprise that Millennials get a bad rep. We are called entitled and self-obsessed, we lack any real work ethic, and in case you didn’t know, we single-handedly ruined the dating culture. Our weapon of choice in destroying monogamous, wholesome relationships? Ironically enough it’s dating apps. If you’ve read any articles on the matter recently, this is what you would be lead to believe. Do Millennials actually use dating apps like Tinder to hook up or is it all just a big joke? Valley spoke to today’s college students to find out.
Valley: What’s your mindset behind using Tinder?
Colleen Meehan (Psychology-senior): “I honestly just use Tinder for fun. I’m not planning on meeting up with anyone, ever. It’s fun swiping but I never click on other pictures of anyone. If someone cute messaged me I would answer, though.”
Leah Kearsley (Psychology-senior): “I would use Tinder for shits and giggles, and to see what kind of people are on there. I maybe swipe yes 1 out of 100 times.”
John* (Neuropsychology-senior): “I use Tinder when I’m bored and/or horny, honestly. It’s a good way to pass the time. I’ve messaged a handful of girls that I’ve matched with, and the one’s that respond are usually down to meet up and grab a drink. Sometimes it’s fun, other times I would’ve preferred to stay at home.”
Brian* (Finance-senior): “I haven’t used Tinder to hook up with anyone, but I’ve definitely swiped.”
Abbey Rouse (Psychology-senior): “I don’t use Tinder but I think Tinder is something that people do out of boredom, but it isn’t a bad thing.I don’t really agree with how you swipe one way just based off of a picture. It’s kind of shallow….looks aren’t everything! I guess if you’re looking to just hook up then it’s an easy way to do so.”
Chris* (Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship-senior): “I really don’t use Tinder and if I have, I’ve never tried to meet a Tinder girl in person.”
Valley: What’s a red flag when it comes to looking at the someone else’s Tinder profile?
Colleen Meehan: “Mirror pics are a major red flag. Most of the time if you have a mirror picture you’re shirtless and trying to be a bodybuilder or something and that’s just annoying.”
Leah Kearsley: “If I see someone holding a dead deer or any animal for that matter, I will immediately swipe left. Extremely long bios and mirror pictures are also big turn-offs.”
*John: “It’s pretty annoying when there’s a guy in their picture and you don’t know if that’s her boyfriend or just a friend.”
*Brian: “When a girl’s bio says ‘I’m not looking for a hook up’… It’s an app for random hook ups. Guys aren’t looking for a friend to snuggle with like girls say they want in their profiles.”
*Chris: “If all a girl’s pictures are group shots it’s hard to tell which one they are.”
Valley: Would you consider Tinder a dating app or more of a social media outlet?
Colleen: “I don’t know, I don’t consider it either. My intention anytime I used it was to see what was going on in the town I was in, not to meet a guy and hook up. So I’d say it’s somewhere in between.”
Leah: “I’d say it’s a dating app because you’re rarely changing things and updating it in a social media type of way. On social media apps, I don’t receive random messages from guys with cheesy pickup lines, but that happens a lot on Tinder.”
John*: “It’s a social media outlet. I think a lot of people use it to build or reinforce their self-confidence. The more matches an individual gets, the better they may feel about themselves, similar to getting likes on Instagram.”
Abbey: “Tinder is a social media outlet. I think more people just talk and flirt on it more than people actually end up meeting.”
Brian*: “Dating app, because it is focused on meeting the opposite sex or the sex that you are interested in. I can’t go on tinder swiping through people and hang out with a stranger that I match with, without there being the assumption of sexual interest.”
There is no ‘one answer fits all’ concerning the reason millennials use Tinder. To some, it is merely a way to pass a boring lecture while to others it allows for the chance of real-life human interaction.
Nevertheless, new research has found that millennials are having less sex than any other generation. So, next time a baby boomer tries to guilt you into taking the blame for our hook up culture, let them know that even with 1.4 billion swipes and 26 million matches per day on the dating app, they still have us beat when it comes to actually doing it.
*Name changed for anonymity.
