Women on dating sites are inundated with hundreds of messages — scientists have found a simple solution

Researchers from the US conducted an experiment on a major Indian dating platform and found that a simple filter restricting who could view a woman’s profile reduced information noise and improved the quality of matches by 72%. Moreover, men were hardly affected by this.

The study has been accepted for publication in the journal Information Systems Research.

An important caveat: the study was conducted on a specific platform for finding a marriage partner in India, with its own distinct cultural norms. One should be cautious about directly applying these findings to European apps such as Tinder or Bumble — the context is significantly different.

Details

On most dating platforms, there are significantly more men than women. On Indian matrimonial sites — those where people are looking for a partner for serious relationships and marriage — the ratio can be as high as 90:10 in favour of men. In such a situation, men start sending out invitations en masse, simply to increase their chances of a response.

The result is predictable. The study found that women received on average 40 times more expressions of interest than men. In the first few days after signing up, they were literally inundated with requests. It was impossible to make sense of them, or to understand how the platform actually worked. Many simply left.

Researchers led by Sabari Rajan Karmegam from George Mason University (USA) decided to test the ‘gender gate’ hypothesis. The concept is simple: women’s profiles are only visible to men who meet certain criteria — regarding age, education and income. For example, a man over forty could not view the profiles of women more than ten years his junior or more than a couple of years his senior.

At the same time, women retained full control: they could adjust the settings to suit themselves. Men could not opt out of the filter.

The experiment was conducted in two Indian states with similar social and economic indicators — one served as the control group, the other as the test group. The results were convincing. Women in the test group received 6% fewer incoming requests — but the quality of matches increased by 72%. Women over the age of 25 — those whose age was a better match for potential partners — saw a 103% increase in the quality of matches and were 113% more likely to message first. In other words, they not only received better matches but also took the initiative more actively.

The experiment had no significant effect on men: their metrics did not deteriorate.

Why this matters

The problem described by the study is relevant far beyond India. A similar imbalance is observed on most dating platforms worldwide: there are more men than women, and the volume of irrelevant messages is enormous. This undermines women’s experience, reduces their engagement and ultimately harms the platform itself — because without active women, it loses its value for everyone.

The study shows that the problem does not necessarily require radical measures to be solved. A smart filter that reduces noise without compromising diversity is sufficient. Moreover, a filter that leaves women with the right to choose — they can switch it off.

The authors also suggest thinking more broadly. Similar logic could work in other areas: in academic recruitment (filtering candidates by the profile of the educational institution), in services for teenagers (parents can request additional restrictions for their children’s accounts). These are ideas for the future, not conclusions of the study — but they demonstrate just how universal the principle itself is.

Background

Online dating has long been one of the main ways to find a partner in Europe and around the world. According to research, a significant proportion of new relationships today begin through apps and websites. But as the popularity of these platforms grows, so does the criticism: algorithms often exacerbate existing inequalities rather than smoothing them out.

Matchmaking platforms in India are a special case. These are not simply dating sites, but tools for finding a partner for marriage, often with the family involved in the selection process. Cultural expectations regarding age, education and income are much stricter there than on Western platforms. This is precisely why the ‘gender gate’ with such criteria has fitted seamlessly into the local context.

The study of imbalances on two-sided platforms is a rapidly developing field in economics and information systems. This work is one of the rare examples where the idea has been tested in a real-world field experiment, rather than merely modelled theoretically.

Source

Sabari Rajan Karmegam, Jui Ramaprasad, Anand Gopal, ‘Gender Gating? Addressing the Impact of Congestion on the User Experience for Women in Online Matching Platforms’, accepted for publication in Information Systems Research.