“In my immediate friend group, I reckon I go on the most dates,” says Sophie, 21, “but I barely date except for summer, it’s quite bad, actually”.
“I think most of my friends are fed up with dating.”
Sophie paints quite a grim picture of modern dating in London. She says dating apps are a “faff”, and the whole process is “almost too overwhelming”.
It’s not just young people worrying about dating. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a centre-right UK think tank, released the first part of a report earlier this week.
Its topic? “The Relationship Recession”.
The report describes the UK as “experiencing a persistent and meaningful decline in the relationships between young men and women.”
The CSJ also emphasises the stakes of the problem, arguing trends “will have long term impacts ranging from individual health and happiness to the future shape of our economy.”
The think tank is also not alone in witnessing a change in how young people approach dating.
“If the statistics are right, young people are having less sex, they’re having fewer romantic relationships, and they’re meeting face-to-face less” says Dr Natasha McKeever, from the Centre for Love, Sex, and Relationships at Leeds University.
“I think Gen Z has been called the most connected but loneliest generation.”
Sophie echoed this, describing how often “you talk on [a dating app] for a bit, you meet up once, you then don’t really talk after that.”
Data from the ONS appears to agree; suggesting young people are increasingly living with their parents rather than partners or friends.
Some of the causes of isolation, such as housing, are particularly acute in London.
But do young people in the city feel like they’re living through a “relationship recession”? What barriers do they see and are they worried?
Daniel, 30, and Grania, 28, in a long-term relationship, spoke about the challenges facing people they know:
“I think it’s hard today, [after hearing] from friends and even thinking back to when I was single five years ago, dating online is tough”, said Grania, while Daniel mentioned how apps gave “more of a fast pace”, creating a “pick something up, throw it away, aspect to it.”
Logistics also come into play: “People are trying to date, trying to get to know someone, and they’re living at home because it’s so unaffordable. You’re bringing them back home, you have your family there, you have five housemates there.”
Nicole and Karina, both 19, highlighted the problems dating in a city like London.
Karina said: “I think if you live in a town where you know each other, everyone knows each other, I think it would be easier to date… you’ve met them, you can’t really like see someone’s body language through a screen.”
“I think it has got more difficult, especially living in London. Everyone’s busy most of the time. Everything’s expensive here.” shared Nicole.
There was also concern from Daniel about the wider impact: “Yes, I think it is something that the general population should be worried about because it plays into a lot of how people are emotionally”.
When asked whether her dating experiences had impacted her quality of life, Sophie didn’t seem worried.
“To be honest, I don’t think I care enough.”
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Standfirst
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Headline‘Most of my friends are fed up with dating’
Short HeadlineAre Londoners facing a 'relationship recession'?
StandfirstA think tank says young people are dating less, so should we be worried?
“In my immediate friend group, I reckon I go on the most dates,” says Sophie, 21, “but I barely date except for summer, it’s quite bad, actually”.
“I think most of my friends are fed up with dating.”
Sophie paints quite a grim picture of modern dating in London. She says dating apps are a “faff”, and the whole process is “almost too overwhelming”.
It’s not just young people worrying about dating. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a centre-right UK think tank, released the first part of a report earlier this week.
Its topic? “The Relationship Recession”.
The report describes the UK as “experiencing a persistent and meaningful decline in the relationships between young men and women.”
The CSJ also emphasises the stakes of the problem, arguing trends “will have long term impacts ranging from individual health and happiness to the future shape of our economy.”
The think tank is also not alone in witnessing a change in how young people approach dating.
“If the statistics are right, young people are having less sex, they’re having fewer romantic relationships, and they’re meeting face-to-face less” says Dr Natasha McKeever, from the Centre for Love, Sex, and Relationships at Leeds University.
“I think Gen Z has been called the most connected but loneliest generation.”
Sophie echoed this, describing how often “you talk on [a dating app] for a bit, you meet up once, you then don’t really talk after that.”
Data from the ONS appears to agree; suggesting young people are increasingly living with their parents rather than partners or friends.
Some of the causes of isolation, such as housing, are particularly acute in London.
But do young people in the city feel like they’re living through a “relationship recession”? What barriers do they see and are they worried?
Daniel, 30, and Grania, 28, in a long-term relationship, spoke about the challenges facing people they know:
“I think it’s hard today, [after hearing] from friends and even thinking back to when I was single five years ago, dating online is tough”, said Grania, while Daniel mentioned how apps gave “more of a fast pace”, creating a “pick something up, throw it away, aspect to it.”
Logistics also come into play: “People are trying to date, trying to get to know someone, and they’re living at home because it’s so unaffordable. You’re bringing them back home, you have your family there, you have five housemates there.”
Nicole and Karina, both 19, highlighted the problems dating in a city like London.
Karina said: “I think if you live in a town where you know each other, everyone knows each other, I think it would be easier to date… you’ve met them, you can’t really like see someone’s body language through a screen.”
“I think it has got more difficult, especially living in London. Everyone’s busy most of the time. Everything’s expensive here.” shared Nicole.
There was also concern from Daniel about the wider impact: “Yes, I think it is something that the general population should be worried about because it plays into a lot of how people are emotionally”.
When asked whether her dating experiences had impacted her quality of life, Sophie didn’t seem worried.
