I feel like online dating apps are kinda holding people back from learning better social skills
I'm a woman in my mid-30s. I spent a good chunk of my 20s dating a lot of men who I met outside dating apps. Except for one guy, every single guy that I have met, were through face to face meets...and I take a lot of pride in saying that I have never used dating apps to meet people. Unlike all my girlfriends who rely on apps, I have always entertained only in-person meets and interactions.
Part of the reason is because you can gauge a person better in face to face meets; whereas on an online app, you may seem charming (for example) but maybe the opposite in person.
I'm not saying that people don't put on facades in person. But I feel it's easier to get away with that on an online app. People can deliberately or even unintentionally come across a certain way on online apps but when you meet in person, it's harder to fake certain qualities.
The other aspect is chemistry; it is easy to create artificial chemistry on an online app but genuine chemistry is harder to create and more organic when you meet someone in person. That spark is not something you can artificially create which brings me to the main point I've been meaning to discuss --
I understand that we all come from a conservative culture where arranged marriages are still the norm. But while we do have speed dating events and parties at clubs and singles-mixer events, I think too many Indians (both men and women too) who don't want to go through arranged marriage route and actually want to date the person, or want to do the whole boyfriend-girlfriend relationship before marrying the person, are not doing themselves any favours by relying solely or heavily on online dating apps.
Most of my women-friends have to deal with too many men who just don't know how to flirt....or heck....even carry a normal conversation without it turning awkward or creepy or cringey REAL QUICK. A good example would be....a woman-friend of mine was recently texting a guy (a doctor, no less) on Bumble with whom she thought she had good chemistry with until he started trauma dumping on her about the fact that he had attempted suicide 4 years ago, and his father passed away as a result of dealing with the emotional distress and shock of almost loosing his son to suicide, that his entire family cut him out of their lives because of the attempted suicide and what it did to his father AND he claimed that he never got help for his mental health because he "got over it" and is "doing just fine" (even though his entire family still don't speak to him).
All this...on a dating app!
And that too with someone he's only known for HALF A FREAKIN DAY!!
I mean.....who the fuck starts a conversation like that?!?! My friend just sat down!!!
Anyway....
....my point being; I think dating apps has become a crutch (and not a good one), especially for the socially handicapped amongst us Indians (and ESPECIALLY the men).
And I think Indians, who don't want to go through the AM route, should stop relying on this so heavily.