The Association Between Dating Application Use and Happiness in Finland
Lehtola, Iiris (2025)
2025
Yhteiskuntatutkimuksen maisteriohjelma - Master's Programme in Social Sciences
Yhteiskuntatieteiden tiedekunta - Faculty of Social Sciences
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2025-05-27
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202505276218
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202505276218
Tiivistelmä
While the popularity of dating apps is undeniable, research examining their impact on users remains limited. Dating applications are location-based software facilitating romantic and sexual encounters, simulating meeting venues. According to sociologists, they reshape dating culture and socialization to sex, creating an atmosphere of uncertainty. Evidence suggests that these applications can lead to choice overload, compulsive usage, anxiety, and social comparison, all of which may negatively affect well-being. However, peer-reviewed research on dating apps in Finland is scarce, necessitating further exploration of their impacts.
This study focuses on user well-being in the context of dating applications. It does this by combining theoretical perspectives from subjective well-being and happiness studies, and combining literature from social psychology, sociology, and population studies. It employs robust hierarchical multiple linear regression to evaluate happiness levels among users and examines how social belonging influences this relationship. The study poses two primary questions: 1) How does the use of dating apps relate to happiness? 2) Does social belonging mitigate the possible negative link between dating app usage and happiness? The research utilizes data from the Self & Technology project at Tampere University’s Emerging Technologies Lab, focusing on a cross-sectional sample from 2022, reflecting a representative population of Finland.
The study revealed a significant negative association between happiness and online dating app usage, particularly among active users. However, a positive moderating effect of family belonging was noted on the adverse relationship between dating app usage and happiness, while belonging to friends or romantic partners did not exhibit any buffering influence. Additional tests were done to examine the buffering effect of age and to assess the relationship between marital status and happiness. Young age was found to have a buffering effect, and singlehood was positively associated with happiness. Age and all three subcategories of social belonging showed a strong, positive main effect on happiness.
In conclusion, the well-being effects of online dating on happiness appear to be dose-dependent, with the most pronounced negative impact observed among those who engage with these apps weekly or daily. However, the mechanism underlying this association requires further investigation. The pioneering results provide novel information to address a contemporary social issue and advance the understanding of the intersection of digital intimacy and well-being in Finland, playing a foundational role by offering early empirical evidence.
This study focuses on user well-being in the context of dating applications. It does this by combining theoretical perspectives from subjective well-being and happiness studies, and combining literature from social psychology, sociology, and population studies. It employs robust hierarchical multiple linear regression to evaluate happiness levels among users and examines how social belonging influences this relationship. The study poses two primary questions: 1) How does the use of dating apps relate to happiness? 2) Does social belonging mitigate the possible negative link between dating app usage and happiness? The research utilizes data from the Self & Technology project at Tampere University’s Emerging Technologies Lab, focusing on a cross-sectional sample from 2022, reflecting a representative population of Finland.
The study revealed a significant negative association between happiness and online dating app usage, particularly among active users. However, a positive moderating effect of family belonging was noted on the adverse relationship between dating app usage and happiness, while belonging to friends or romantic partners did not exhibit any buffering influence. Additional tests were done to examine the buffering effect of age and to assess the relationship between marital status and happiness. Young age was found to have a buffering effect, and singlehood was positively associated with happiness. Age and all three subcategories of social belonging showed a strong, positive main effect on happiness.
In conclusion, the well-being effects of online dating on happiness appear to be dose-dependent, with the most pronounced negative impact observed among those who engage with these apps weekly or daily. However, the mechanism underlying this association requires further investigation. The pioneering results provide novel information to address a contemporary social issue and advance the understanding of the intersection of digital intimacy and well-being in Finland, playing a foundational role by offering early empirical evidence.