FauxPAS, the biggest dating app from Gen Z? Staying

For Goodwillie, seriousness also suggests that the open arm of dating apps, and not deeply unenclosed as a mechanism to find love. “My mother always says, ‘You’ll meet someone when you’re not expecting it,'” she says. “When I look at my profile, I always feel like I have it deep inside. “Yeah, I don’t take this too seriously. I might see what happens and meet someone. So I feel like I tend to be drawn to profiles where they seem to have the same casual attitude about it.”

Will Gray, 26, of Nashville, is also postponed by a profile he thinks is too serious. He saw a response to hinge as being too sincere, like “what I’m looking for: someone who’s thick and thin and always supports me no matter what.”

“I’m very judgemental. I think that’s part of what the app does. They give you a judgement,” he says.

He had a disgust with a serious response in mind when creating his profile. When it was time for him to answer the app prompts, he felt the “threat of being too serious” and wanted to go off as something sarcasm and lighthearted. He describes his profile as “semi-energy” and “somewhat ironic.”

“It just partly just doesn’t want to be vulnerable or anxious,” he says.

Long term love

Gray acknowledges that this sense of self can hinder young people’s ability to get what they want from the app, namely love and dating. “The people who bring that serious and serious energy are, frankly, perhaps the most long-term success.

Annabelle Williams, 25, from Brooklyn, agrees with Gray that app directness is probably a key indicator of success. Her friend, who showed that she was looking for a long-term relationship, is now one with someone who also clearly states the same desires.

But in Williams’ own online dating life, those who say what they’re looking for is “the biggest red flag I’ve ever seen,” describe it as “embarrassing.” “When I see someone saying, ‘I’m looking for a long-term relationship’, I say, ‘OK, you’re not looking for me. You’re just looking for someone.”

Similarly, 24-year-old Brooklyn Liam Katz describes his integrity towards dating on the app as “unnatural.” He compared his serious-looking online dating profile to “pictures of someone in front of the Statue of Liberty.”

“When you’re at a party with someone, they say, ‘Oh, yeah, I don’t smoke too often, I’m looking for a short-term relationship, and this is my sign.’ That’s not how people start talking,” Katz says. He calls that level of immediate disclosure “silly.”

“Usually it starts when you’re kidding about something,” he says. “It’s been lost a bit. I think dating apps do. “We’re looking for this, and this, and the perfect person. And that’s a bit lame and sad.”