Simply put, relationship scientists all across the world produce so much great research that it’s hard to narrow the list.So we (the Science Of team) combed through hundreds of articles and chose a handful that highlight some interesting findings about dating, with an eye towards those studies that we could translate into fun graphics.“So although dating and romantic relationships are important for adolescents and young adults today, some of the expectations around dating and functions of dating may differ when most people get married in their mid- to late-twenties compared to their late teens and early twenties as they did in the past.” Delaying marriage has many implications, including on the sex lives of young singles.Vasilenko, who received her doctorate in Human Development and Family Studies at Penn State, has conducted research on attitudes about sex and dating among college students, and co-authored a related paper with her graduate advisor, Eva Lefkowitz and colleague Jennifer Maggs.

“One of the biggest differences between young people today compared to earlier generations,” she notes, “is that they are getting married at later ages.” A recent Pew study shows that marriage is at a record low in the United States and the median age at first marriage has never been higher for both genders.

For others with no express intention of marriage, dating can still be an important avenue for personal happiness and emotional security in the context of exclusive closeness, or intimacy.

Others engage in what has been termed "casual" dating.

The technology of using a computer to bring humans together was promoted as "scientific" and the use of the computer for this purpose rapidly gained popularity in the United States and Germany (Hardey, 2002, p571).

The rapid expansion of single person households, especially among professional classes who are most likely to have Internet access in their homes, provides a context for this phenomenon.