newswire: 9/3/2020
- According to a new Pew report, 15% of American adults are single and looking, but most of them say it's hard to find people to date. Women are more likely to cite the difficulty of finding someone who is looking for the same kind of relationship, while men are more likely to cite the difficulty of approaching people. (Pew Research Center)
- NH: Back in October, Pew surveyed Americans on their views and experiences about dating. Pew has just published the results. And while they don't reflect the radical effects of Covid-19 (see "Finding Love During Covid-19"), they nevertheless illuminate Americans’ attitudes towards courtship: While many are seeking a relationship, there are a lot of barriers to finding the one.
- So, who's looking for love? 31% of Americans report being single, but only half of them are looking to date. Single men (61%) are far more likely to be looking for a partner than single women (38%). And by age, those 18-29 are the most likely to be looking for a relationship (63%), while those 65+ are the least likely (22%).
- Overall, 75% of single Americans find it very or somewhat difficult to find romantic partners. Why is it so difficult? 53% say it's hard to find someone who wants the same type of relationship. 46% say it's hard to approach someone new. And 37% say not enough people live in their area.
- Women are much more likely than men to say it's difficult to find a partner that meets their expectations (56% vs. 35%). We have long noted the declining "marriageability" of men in the eyes of Millennial women. As an increasing number of young women have begun outperforming men in education, salary, and professional attainment, many men just don't measure up. (See "Millennial Women Just Can't Find Enough Men.")
- IMO, Pew's most interesting findings are on the intersection of love and politics. In today's America, it turns out, dating across racial lines is not nearly so taboo as dating across political party lines. The shares of all respondents who say "they would not ever consider being in a committed relationship" with someone who voted for Donald Trump (47%) or Hillary Clinton (26%) are considerably larger than the shares who say the same about someone of a different religion (23%) or a different race or ethnicity (15%). Assuming these are honest (and not just polite) answers, America is a lot less racist--and a lot more politically polarized--than many believe.
- The high negative number for Trump voters is especially noteworthy. Dating a Trump voter is barely below dating someone who has a significant amount of debt or lives far away. And Pew couldn't find higher negatives than these.
- Why is the negative number for Donald so much higher than the negative number for Hillary? Apparently because Democrats are a lot more closed minded than Republicans. Pew breaks down these numbers in another earlier survey. The results are revealing. Yes, Democrats are somewhat less likely to say they wouldn't date across race or ethnic lines than Republicans (12% versus 23%). But they are much more likely to say they wouldn't date someone who voted for the president of the other party (71% versus 47%).
- Every generation, it seems, offers celebrity examples of marriages that cross party lines. Today we've got Kellyanne and George Conway. Back in the 1990s, we had James Carville and Mary Matalin. But it looks as though such marriages are becoming ever more the exception.
