How economists would fix online dating wsj


How Economists Would Fix Online Dating
“Dating markets are a good example of matching markets,” says Alvin Roth , who won a Nobel Prize in economics in 2012 for studying such markets. “To work well, they have to overcome all the problems markets have to overcome.”
How Economists Would Fix Online Dating
A ‘thick’ market and cost-benefit analysis help avoid ‘romantic unemployment’
Feb. 8, 2016 12:01 am ET
Stanford’s Alvin Roth, who won a Nobel Prize in economics in 2012, says dating sites can be more effective. Photo: Jean-Christophe Bott/Associated Press
There’s no human interaction the Internet can’t make even more alienating, and that goes double for finding a mate. But perhaps one way to make online dating less fraught is to treat it with the kind of clinical detachment that allows humans to becalm their misleading emotions and succeed at related enterprises, from stock trading to hiring the best employees. With Valentine’s Day near, it’s time to bring on the economists.
“Dating markets are a good example of matching markets,” says Alvin Roth , who won a Nobel Prize in economics in 2012 for studying such markets. “To work well, they have to overcome all the problems markets have to overcome.”
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