In celebration of their monumental achievement of garnering 25 million users, homegrown dating app QuackQuack embarked on a survey in the dating landscape. Their 15,000 GenZ users aged 18 to 26 participated in the survey to find out the latest dating terms in the realm of virtual dating.
The participants hailed from tier 1 cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Bangalore to the hidden gems of tier 2 cities like Surat, Lucknow, Jaipur, Bhopal, Patna, Indore, Kochi, Kanpur, and Guwahati. They were a delightful mix of self-employed go-getters, seasoned professionals navigating the labyrinth of work-life balance, and bright-eyed students dreaming of both love and good grades. The survey found below dating trends that are ruling the online dating scene.
Delusionship
As per QuackQuack’s survey, a notable 39% of respondents admitted to having experienced a peculiar phenomenon known as a "delusionship" during their dating. Intriguingly, these individuals described a delusionship as a whimsical state of mind where they conjure up an entire relationship in their imagination, from romantic proposals to envisioning a future with marriage and children, all without taking any real action towards pursuing their crush. Interestingly, among those who disclosed their delusionships, 29% identified themselves as introverts, suggesting that this enchanting tendency may be particularly prevalent among individuals who tend to be more reserved. However, extroverts also found themselves entangled in this web of imaginative romance. What's intriguing is that this captivating "obsession and daydreaming," as the participants described it, knows no geographical boundaries. Both residents of tier 1 and tier 2 cities reported having experienced this intense flight of fancy. It begins as a gradual process, slowly building up in their minds. Fortunately, for most, this whimsical state is fleeting and transient, dissipating before it lingers for too long. It's important to note that if these fantasies persist beyond a certain point, they would no longer be categorized as delusionships.
Evil Dead Rise
The act of exes attempting to make a comeback with enticing but false promises is nothing new, yet the inventive minds of GenZ daters have bestowed upon it a fresh and captivating moniker - Evil Dead Rise. 37% of dating app users aged 18 to 22 have confessed to having fallen victim to Evil Dead Rise, a term that encapsulates the trauma that ensues when revisiting a past relationship. 7% of daters from both tier 1 and tier 2 cities unabashedly admitted to being the perpetrators of the Evil Dead Rise in someone else's life. In their defense, they sought to justify that their intentions were not as malicious as they may appear at first glance. Indeed, for every trend that emerges, the perspective from which it is viewed holds a lot of importance.
Chameleoning
This trend entails individuals continuously adapting their personalities, likes, and dislikes to align with the preferences of their potential matches. Remarkably, the app has even witnessed users modifying their profile bios and preferences accordingly. Within the survey participants, a revealing 23% of women aged 23 to 26 disclosed that they have frequently adjusted their persona to appear more appealing, firmly believing that this practice is commonplace, albeit varying in subtlety across individuals. Similarly, 31% of men between the ages of 21 and 25 admitted to undertaking the same endeavours to make a favourable impression on their dates. However, it is worth noting that 36% of both men and women expressed the opinion that while Chameleoning may be a prevalent practice, major alterations are ultimately unsustainable.
Fake-Ups
This trend has captivated the attention of GenZ daters, predominantly single men, who resort to fabricating a breakup scenario to elicit sympathy from female daters. The ultimate objective behind this deception is to initiate a conversation and, ideally, pursue a romantic relationship. About 18% of male daters hailing from both metropolitan areas and smaller cities have openly admitted to employing fake breakup stories as a means to engage their romantic interests in conversation. In contrast, the participation of women in this trend appears to be relatively lower. 23% of women aged 21 and above believe that men find it easier to exploit the compassion of women, leveraging the concept of fake breakups as a means to conveniently slide into their direct messages.
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