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September 30, 2005

Strange But True!

Q. Hey, chatroom sweeties, are computer-based relationships apt to lead to love/marriage?

A. You can hit the delete button on this one. Building a romance is tough under any circumstances. Obviously, people first have to meet, and see each other again and again for best results. This is called propinquity, or "mere exposure" effect. There is no problem here online — people can meet in cyberspace and communicate often, even if thousands of miles apart. But then there's the stumbling block of "homogamy": A hundred studies have confirmed that relationships flourish best between similars, not opposites: Homogamy is so powerful that successful couples tend to match up in age (within 3-4 years), religion, race, attractiveness (10s marry 10s etc), outgoingness, argumentativeness, smoking habits, health, even height and political views.


 
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