Endogenous drivers of gender disparity in online dating

TL;DR

This paper investigates endogenous factors causing increased gender disparity in online dating, highlighting how expectations and time constraints contribute to widening the gender gap.

Contribution

It introduces a mathematical model based on differential equations to explain the endogenous mechanisms behind gender disparity in online dating.

Findings

Identifies a symmetry-breaking mechanism influencing gender gap widening.

Analyzes fixed points and stability of the proposed differential equation system.

Provides a theoretical framework for understanding gender disparities in online dating.

Abstract

In its early days, online dating was heralded as a great equalizer, removing biases built into the structures of heterosexuality courtship. However, as repeatedly observed, that prophecy was never fulfilled, and some biases have even become exacerbated. In this paper, we identify a general endogenous mechanism that drives the widening of the gender gap in first-contact rates of heterosexual dating. This mechanism relies on assumptions about the participants' expectations of new contacts and their time constraints. We formulate this symmetry-breaking mechanism as a system of differential equations and analyze its fixed points and their stability.