Project Overview
When talking about settlement and integration, we often focus on helping immigrants get jobs, but what about their needs for love and companionship? Forming a satisfying intimate relationship benefits immigrants’ mental and physical health, sense of belonging, and social integration in the host society. As digital technologies penetrate people’s lives, online dating has become a primary way couples meet. This project will collect original data from a large-scale national survey to investigate the use and implications of online dating in Canada, with a focus on the immigrant-native born comparison.
Research Questions
- Has online dating precipitated a “dating apocalypse” characterized by diminished relationship quality, as feared by the public?
- Has online dating become more popular, compared with pre-pandemic?
- As online dating is particularly effective in bringing same-sex couples together, is this benefit of dating technologies reaped by both foreign-born and Canadian-born sexual minorities?
Methods
- Statistical Analysis
- Surveys
Collaborators
UBC Centre for Migration Studies
- Principal Investigator: Yue Qian (Associate Professor, Sociology)
Outputs
Media Coverage
Rolfsen, Erik. “Dating in the digital age: How online dating changes our partner selection.” UBC News, February 12, 2024, https://news.ubc.ca/2024/02/online-dating-partner-selection/
Project Status
This project is currently in the Planning phase.
This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.
