In her interview with Oprah, Meghan Markle admitted that she never researched anything about Prince Harry before she started dating him. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do a little bit of digging on someone you’re going out on a date with. Markle probably already had an idea of who Prince Harry was; you don’t know who Brad from marketing really is. I’m just saying, I do it. I don’t think it’s weird to do a little social media stalking before you go out for tacos just to make sure you’re not taking out a serial killer. – Nick J
Research conducted by risk mitigation specialists JPD has revealed that more of us use social media and the internet to find out as much as we can about potential suitors before meeting them face to face than you might think. JPD surveyed 2,000 people in the U.S. to ask them if they research potential dates, when, and how long they spend on the endeavor.
The study found that 38 percent of those questioned always researched people before going on dates with them, with only 12 percent saying they never did. 76 percent spend 15 minutes or more on their pre-date investigations and the most common time for people to look into their potential suitor is after they have been talking to them but before a first date (72 percent.) Facebook was the preferred platform to conduct this investigation with 88 percent of respondents saying they use the social media platform to look into their dates.
The study found that 63 percent of people surveyed looked most or all the way back on their dates social media, with women twice as likely to look at everything. I am all for knowing that someone spent their last birthday in Vegas but if you know the name of their high school teacher it may have gone too far.
So what exactly do you look for when you are looking into potential suitors social media? The study found that the top two reasons the men and women surveyed gave for having a social media “stalk” before a date were very different.
Whilst women said they did it to check criminal background and their dates work history, the men said they were more interested in pictures, videos, and interests. This would suggest that some women use this time, not only to see where their date usually spends their Saturday nights, but also to ensure they will be safe. Pre-date investigations are no laughing matter either as 40 percent of respondents said they had backed out of a date because of something they found in their research online.
63 percent of respondents said they wouldn’t be embarrassed if their dates knew they had researched them. There is no shame in getting your Sherlock Holmes on and conducting a little investigation.
Via (Bustle)