Researchers Sharpen Cupid’s Aim on Dating Apps

A new algorithm proposed by a UT Dallas researcher could help dating app users find the perfect mate.

In a study published April 7, 2022, in the INFORMS journal Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, Dr. Ignacio Rios, assistant professor of operations management in the Naveen Jindal School of Management, explored a problem faced by online dating companies.

“One of the biggest issues is how to decide which profiles to show to each user … to … get meaningful matches,” Rios said.

The researchers collaborated with a U.S. online dating company to study how its platform should select the set of potential partners to show each user to maximize the number of matches.

The researchers studied users’ preferences, such as age, religion and race, and behavior, such as whether each user logged in and how they evaluated the profiles shown to them.

The study found that the more matches a person has had in the recent past, the fewer likes they give to other profiles. This suggests a history effect, Rios said.

Estimates show that each additional match reduced the probability of a new like by at least 3%.

“We observed that users are less likely to like other profiles when they have recently succeeded in obtaining more matches,” he said.

The researchers incorporated these findings into a new algorithm that improved the overall match rate between 20% and 45%. Those results persuaded the company to test the algorithm in practice.

– Brittany Magelssen