SA wary of online dating
2007-02-08 10:59
Johannesburg - A survey has shown that South Africans are wary of internet romance.
Despite numerous websites for online matchmaking, the international research group Synovate on Wednesday revealed that only 12% of all South African internet users had tried to find love on the internet.
According to Synovate, who wanted to find out how web surfers in South Africa, Brazil, France, Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, Romania and the US felt about online romance; the French tried it most, followed by the US.
"More than a third of the respondents who did not seek online romance, believed only desperate people used the internet to find love," said Synovate.
"The results showed a relatively equal distribution between those who believed the internet to be a fantastic way of meeting people (49%), and those who believed it is a waste of time (48%)."
Among South Africans, 68% said they would never even consider it, 48% said they would rather meet somebody face to face, and 21% believed internet romance was dangerous.
About 82% of all Americans believed people lied when they provided an online profile regarding hobbies, their physique and religion.
Only 4% of all South Africans believed that online dating had a "bad stigma".