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Job Prestige and Mobile Dating Success:A Field Experiment

Author

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  • Brecht Neyt
  • Stijn Baert
  • Jana Vynckier

Abstract

Research exploiting data on classic (offline) couple formation has confirmed predictions from evolutionary psychology in a sense that males attach more value to attractiveness and women attach more value to earnings potential. We examine whether these human partner preferences survive in a context of fewer search and social frictions. We do this by means of a field experiment on the mobile dating app Tinder, which takes a central place in contemporary couple formation. Thirty-two fictitious Tinder profiles that randomly differ in job status and job prestige are evaluated by 4,800 other, real users. We find that both males and females do not use job status or job prestige as a determinant of whom to show initial interest in on Tinder. However, we do see evidence that, after this initial phase, males less frequently begin a conversation with females when those females are unemployed but also then do not care about the particular job prestige of employed females.

Suggested Citation

  • Brecht Neyt & Stijn Baert & Jana Vynckier, 2019. "Job Prestige and Mobile Dating Success:A Field Experiment," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 19/981, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    • Handle: RePEc:rug:rugwps:19/981
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Stefan Eriksson & Dan-Olof Rooth, 2014. "Do Employers Use Unemployment as a Sorting Criterion When Hiring? Evidence from a Field Experiment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(3), pages 1014-1039, March.
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    5. Raymond Fisman & Sheena S. Iyengar & Emir Kamenica & Itamar Simonson, 2006. "Gender Differences in Mate Selection: Evidence From a Speed Dating Experiment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 121(2), pages 673-697.
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    9. Ann-Sophie De Pauw, 2016. "Do employer preferences contribute to sticky floors ?," Post-Print hal-01772258, HAL.
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    11. Abramova, Olga & Baumann, Annika & Krasnova, Hanna & Buxmann, Peter, 2016. "Gender Differences in Online Dating: What Do We Know So Far? A Systematic Literature Review," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 77661, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
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    Cited by:

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    job prestige; partner preferences; dating apps; online dating; Tinder;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments

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