Shared Political Beliefs Increase Online Messaging Rates by 9.5-10.8%

A study on online dating found political affiliation is just as important, if not more, as education when it comes to choosing a mate.

Researchers from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and Yale University found having shared political beliefs with matches increases messaging rates between 9.5 and 10.8%, which is nearly the same produced by shared educational levels at 10.6%.

The study also found men and women were more likely to pursue romantic relationships with people from their own political party or with similar political beliefs.

“Having shared political beliefs increases

messaging rates between 9.5 and 10.8%”

About 200 participants were asked to evaluate a group of random online dating profiles and rate how attractive they found each profile’s author.

Overall, participants rated profiles more attractive when their authors mirrored both their own political affiliation and level of political engagement.

Researchers then partnered with an online dating site to create seven politically-oriented questions new users had to answer before signing up.

The study results determined users were more likely to positively interact with each other when they shared political positions, even when those positions were kept private.

Source: Yale.edu.