Match Group denies this, calling the claims "ridiculous". But anyone who, like me, has spent years on and off the apps knows that there are clear parallels between love algorithms and online gaming - only with dating apps, we are the commodities.
Addiction may have been baked into these apps from creation. Tinder's co-founder, Jonathan Badeen, confessed to being inspired by psychology experiments on pigeons. Experts have highlighted how the gamification of dating apps releases neurochemicals such as dopamine and serotonin, which are responsible for boosting your mood, into the brain. It's unsurprising, then, that dating apps can feel so addictive.
As the lawsuit claims, we're being programmed to constantly seek a dopamine hit from each swipe in what it calls a "pay-to-play" loop. That's probably why the "most compatible" feature on Hinge brings up someone you likely couldn't see yourself with in a million years, and why when it's time to delete the apps, you're offered alternatives such as "freeze your account" or "reset".
Dating apps are profit-driven, not powered by love, community or kindness. Yet even though most of us know the pitfalls, we still choose to participate, even at the cost of our mental health.
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