One long-term debate about relationships in the modern world concerns an age-old question. In the context of online communication, is it better for people looking for partners to text, or to talk? The end results of both means of message transmission are the same, but which is really best when it comes to the desire to make a good impression on someone?
Texting is most certainly a sign of the times. Young people today are used to living in an increasingly homogenized society, where they are far more likely to follow the pack in terms of their musical and other cultural tastes. Social media ensures that there are recommend films and television shows they should be watching because ‘everyone else is'. Fashion icons leap from magazine pages – and for all the taglines about being ‘bold' or ‘energetic' or autonomous', there is a far stronger prevailing desire nor to look too out of place. What this all means for today's singletons is that their attitude to romance is very often far more disposable than their parents' generation.
The celebrated ‘first date' is easily conquered in the world of texting. Where people are using websites or apps to engage with potential partners, a lot of those awkward first questions can be dealt with in the privacy of the home. Where chemistry was once relied upon to inform the decisions about whether or not someone was suitable material for a ‘second date', a series of brief text exchanges can accomplish the same process.
For many youngsters, actually going out on a social engagement with someone who is, to all intents and purposes, a stranger, is simply a bizarre concept. Nowadays social media allows for all sorts of subtle interrogation techniques to be enacted. A Facebook profile reveals a lot about someone's personality, interests, hobbies and friends. This platform also allows for informal get-togethers that can be conducted under the cover of private messages. These exchanges can allow individuals to determine the suitability of potential partners, without the social awkwardness of embarrassing confrontations.
There are a hundred and one reasons why texting is preferable to talking. Some people are socially awkward, through natural shyness, or perhaps some disability. Same sex partnerships can be explored in an avenue that is completely free from the disapproving looks of narrow-minded onlookers.
Using social media, people can be far less inhibited in their interactions. This can lead to truer images of their personalities shining through. In the more traditional notion of blind dates, there can be a tendency to put up a defensive front.