| |
|
Report on The Dating Game
Smart girls decide for themselves™.
|
Looks like girls are the majority again! Over 95% of the SmartGirls polled were girls, 3% were boys, and 2% choose to keep that a secret :) Also in the majority is the amount of 13 year olds responding. Twenty-two percent fell into this category. Looking at the bar graph below we notice the largest age groups using this are ages 11-15. Of these SmartGirl we have girls represented from Ireland, Australia, England, Japan, Uzbekistan, USA, New Zealand, Malaysia, Pakistan, plus many more! Now that's a range of opinions and cultures! Also most of you reported that you were the oldest child (37%).
|
| How old are you? |
|
|
|
As seen in the pie chart below, we can see that each of the different types of "hometown areas" are represented. Some argue that where you are raised has an impact on your dating life. What do you think? Keep reading on to check out what we found during this SmartGirl survey. Most of our SmartGirls live in a town (34%), followed by a big city (23%), suburb (19%), rural (8%), village (7%), and the remaining percentage either did not know how to clasify their "hometown area" or chose not to answer.
|
| My home town is a... |
|
|
|
Not quite an even split, but we have lots of SmartGirls representing both sides of the fence...923 out of 1352 SmartGirls answered that they were not currently in a relationship. That leaves a remaining 29.8% that do in fact have a boyfriend or girlfriend. But who is to judge which side of the fence has the greener grass? Some prefer to be single 4eva, some like to be attached, while others are riding on top of the fence waiting to see which side they will eventually fall onto. Wherever you may fall, all sides have equally positive traits, so don't fret if you feel you're on a side that you wish you weren't on!
|
| Are you currently in a relationship (i.e. have a girlfriend/boyfriend) |
|
|
|
We wanted to know how long our SmartGirls have been in their current relationship. Looks like most (28.7%) that are with someone are just starting out and have been together with their boyfriend/girlfriend for about 1 to 3 months. An even bigger majority though answered that this question was not applicable because they were not in a relationship at the time of taking this survey. A few of you (5.92%) have already been in a relationship for over a year! Wow!!
|
| How long have you been in a relationship? |
|
|
count | percent |
HowLong
|
| 1-3mo. |
388 | 28.7 |
| 4-6mo. |
59 | 4.36 |
| 7-9mo. |
26 | 1.92 |
| 10-12mo. |
21 | 1.55 |
| 1yr. + |
80 | 5.92 |
| Not in one. |
778 | 57.54 |
|
|
|
The question that always somehow comes up when you get older is your first kiss. It's suppose to be one of those things you don't forget. So we wanted to know when your first kiss was. Listed in the bar graph below shows what age they were first kissed, if that even applied to them. Although many SmartGirls have not had their first kiss (Don't worry, there's no rush! Promise!), the most commom age to have a first kiss, as recorded by your surveys, was between 11 and 12 years of age. There were some girls that had it earlier, and some that had it younger. It shouldn't matter what age you have or have had your first kiss at... only kiss if you are ready to do it! No one should force you into doing something you don't want to do EVER!
|
| When was your first kiss? |
|
|
Wow did we get a ton of responses for this question! Check out what SmartGirls like yourself told us...
"Oh god it was horrible. My boyfriend at the time said we should kiss on this roller coaster, where they take the pictures, and I was like, no let's not, so once we were on the ride, he basically grabbed me and kissed for the camera. Once off the ride, I saw the picture and it looked like he was attacking me...it was horrendous!"
"I think that it will be very romantic, but I want to be totally prepared to have the kiss and really be in love with the guy."
"My first kiss was on a park bench in the middle of summer under a beautiful sky of stars. I really wanted to kiss the guy I had met a few days ago, but didn't know how to get around to it. So I asked him what he was thinking. And his answer was the one I was hoping for. He told me he was thinking that he wanted to kiss me. And I told him I was thinking that I wanted him to kiss me too. Before you know it we kissed. It was the perfect first kiss that I had always dreamed about."
"I have not had it yet, but if it was with the right person, I think it would be like the whole world falling away and all that would be left would be that person."
"I had a party at my dad’s house and my friends and me were playing truth or dare and they dared him to kiss me. He did! There were no fireworks like people say and I didn't get a warm feeling (probably because I didn't like him!), but at least he did have really have soft lips. I wish that wasn't my first kiss because I wanted my first kiss to be with that special someone."
"Hahaha it was SOOO bad... I was really nervous and had no idea what I was doing!"
"I imagine we would be at the beach. We would see the sunset. Then we would tell each other our feelings. Then in the next minute, we would be kissing."
"My first kiss was not that special. It was a simple kiss on the lips that lasted a couple of seconds. There was no "magic" or "sparks." I was really disappointed."
"I think that my first kiss will not be pressured. He will be kissing me because he likes me, not because he wants to be cool or his friends are pressuring him. It would be very romantic."
"I would imagine my first kiss to take place when I am in college, which would make me about 18 or 19. It would be a genuine, sincere, mature kiss. It would not be done just so that I would be able to say I kissed someone. It would probably be after a classy soiree, so my date and I would be in formal attire (not prom formal, though, more like cocktail party formal). Perhaps we would kiss on a park bench."
"Basically, I can't remember it! I was three and my best guy friend's mom was taking pictures of us. Then she said to my friend, "Hunter, give Gretchen a kiss." and he did!"
|
Almost a tie on this question! It was 57.4% (DO believe) vs. 42.6% (DO NOT believe). Overall though, most of you do believe in love at first sight. They believe in the whole idea that fate does exist. But almost an equal amount of you (551 to be exact!) think that love at first sight can't exist--they think you need to get to know someone's personality first before you can make that decision. There is no scientific proof that the phenomenon of "love-at-first-sight" exists, so the critics as well as our SmartGirls are torn with this decision.
Was it love? Is it love? Well according to our survey, 53% of you have been in love, 14% say they have not ever been in love, and 33% aren't really sure. If you're wondering how to describe love, well that's a hard thing to do. So not being sure if you're in love is ok...but once you are you'll know. Ask anyone who is in love and they will probably tell you that it's unexplainable.
|
| Do you believe in "Love-at-first-sight"? |
|
|
|
We asked SmartGirls what they thought about blind dates. Only 23% of you thought it was exciting enough to actually pursue going on a blind date. A small percentage more said that there was no way that they would go on a blind date because you never know what you could be getting yourself into. The majority of you (47%) seemed pretty open-minded about the idea of a blind date and said that you would consider going if your friends thought that you might be a good match with the other person. It may be risky business, but sometimes the biggest risks provide the biggest gains.
|
| Would you go on a blind date? |
|
|
|
We asked all of you what age you thought was the best time to start dating. Again we received a pretty normally distributed graph of information (meaning that there is a peak and on both sides of the peak it gradually declines at roughly the same rate). So a small amount of you agreed that dating should occur at a very young age (under 9 years old) and some say at an older age (ages 16 and over). But the majority of you said that dating should begin between the ages of 12-13 (34% said this). This is around the time that most of you are in middle school. The second runner up was the ages 14 to 15; that is the beginning of high school for many. Dating can occur at any age, but a lot of times it depends on what your parents say, but based on the results most SmartGirls think that they should be able to date at age 12! Pass the word on!
|
| At what age do you think that people should be able to start dating? |
|
|
|
We presented the question, "Would you ever date your best friend's boyfriend/girlfriend if you both liked each other or would you pass because he dated your best friend?" Fifty-eight percent of our SmartGirls responded "No way! I think I'll pass on that one", while the other forty-two percent said, "Yes I would date him/her if I knew for sure that they liked me". Just make sure that your friend is done dating them before you get involved-- if you don't wait that could make a sticky situation!
|
| Would you ever date a best friend's ex-boyfriend/girlfriend? |
|
|
|
This question has received a lot of hype in the media and in magazines lately, "When you go out on dates, do you think that the guy should pay?” Traditionally since courtship began (of course that's not what we call it now... that sounds so old-fashioned!), guys took care of making plans, paying for things, and actually "courting" the girl. It was a long process. But it seems since the new millennium has come that the tables have begun to turn and women are becoming more empowered in the dating scene. They are the ones making the plans, paying for dinners, and making the first moves. When we asked our SmartGirls what they thought about the whole "paying for the date" issue, the majority of you said that it depends on the situation and that you would not mind paying for the date. Still there was 28% of you that said, "Yes he should always treat. That's the way it always has been and should stay that way", while the other 16% of you said "No, it's the year 2003 not the 1950's! Having a guy pay for everything is a thing of the past".
|
| When you go out on dates, do you think that they guy should pay? |
|
|
count | percent |
|
GuyPays
|
| Yes |
381 | 28.82 |
| Depends |
754 | 57.03 |
| No |
187 | 14.15 |
|
|
|
There has been a new form of dating that has spread like wildfire across the world--online dating. We wanted to know what your opinion was on this latest craze. A large amount of you, 823 to be exact, said that you were still a bit skeptical about the whole situation because you can't be sure of who you are really talk to and would probably not try it. Twenty-one percent of you said that it's an idea that you still have to get used to, but it's probably something that you wouldn't mind trying. The smallest percentage of you, only 14%, said that you thought it was cool because you can actually talk to someone and see if you are compatible with them before you go out on a real date, and that you would definitely try it out.
|
| What is your opinion on the latest craze, online dating? |
|
|
|
Based on your answers, the majority of you said that on a first date that a quick kiss on the lips would be ok with you. Others of you said that holding hands would be as far as you would go (13.09%), a cute bear hug (13.17%), a kiss on the cheek (24.11%), and some said maybe more than a kiss (13.31%). Where do you fall?
|
| On a first date how far would you let your date go? |
|
|
count | percent |
|
HowFar
|
| Hands |
177 | 13.09 |
| Hug |
178 | 13.17 |
| Cheek |
326 | 24.11 |
| Lips |
491 | 36.32 |
| More |
180 | 13.31 |
|
|
There was almost an even split between your answers to the question, "Would you or have you had sex before marriage?" The results were as follows:
25% said, "Yes I plan to and/or already have",
40% said, "No, I'm saving myself for my lifetime partner", and
33% said, "If I find Mr./Mrs. Right, then yes, but until then..."
As long as you are clear of what you want to do, that is all that matters. Don't compromise your morals for anyone... be who you are not what someone else wants you to be or do!
|
| Would you or have you had sex before marriage? |
|
|
|
So the idea of cohabitation is relatively new on the dating/marriage scene. Cohabitation is a term that is referred to a couple that decides to live together without any formal commitment established yet. Some people these days are choosing to cohabitate instead of getting married, and some are thinking that cohabitation is a good idea to do before getting married for life. Sixty-five percent of you said that you thought it was a good idea to see how they really are when you live with them under the same roof, while the other 35% said it was not a good idea because if problems arise between the two of you then you don't have the bond of marriage to encourage one another to work the problems out.
|
| Do you think that living with someone before you marry them is a good idea (i.e. cohabitation)? |
|
|
|
What would you do if you liked someone in your class? Seventeen percent of you said that you would definitely go up and tell them...if you don't take a risk then you'll never know what will happen! Fifty-six percent of you said that you would probably have your friends find out the scoop to see if they liked you or not, then you would have your friend drop them a hint that you were interested. Finally, twenty-seven percent of you said that you would probably be too shy to do anything so you would probably continue to admire and stare at them from afar.
|
| If you liked someone in a class of yours what would you do? |
|
|
|
Religion is definitely a touchy subject among parents and their children. They always want what is best for the children. We asked you "If you found out your partner was a different religion than you, what would you do?" Here’s what you told us: 74% said that you would continue to date then because you believe that love can surpass all, 15% said that you would probably continue to date then, but that your parents would not approve of it, and lastly 11% said that you would break up with them--if we aren't then same religion, then things just won't work out.
|
| If you found out your partner was a different religion that you, what would you do? |
|
|
count | percent |
|
Religion
|
| Continue dating |
995 | 75.49 |
| Parents disapprove |
200 | 15.17 |
| Break-up |
123 | 9.33 |
|
|
Picture this: All of your friends know that you like the coolest guy/girl in school. They decided that since neither of you were doing anything about it that they would set up a situation where the two of you would be left alone together, You now stand face-to-face with this crush. What do you do? What do you say?
Here's a few things that SmartGirls wrote in to us:
I would start up a nice conversation with him and I would maybe ask him to go to the movies with me. Get a good connection going and then ask him to do something with me.
I would be calm about it and just be myself. If they like me for who I am then it's all good. I would also try to find out as much as I could about them to make sure I really like them for who they are not how they look.
I would be mortified, but I would try to hide it and say something normal like “Hi” and “Did you see Eastenders last night?” If I were feeling brave I would take the advantage to ask him whether he had seen the latest movie, and if he wanted to go with my friends and me.
I would say “hi”…that would make the most sense, right?
I would start an interesting conversation and not forget to smile. I’d show him how smart and charismatic I am but without sounding boring. I’d make sure I let him know how fun I can be by having a laugh with him maybe telling a joke or a funny story. I would also try to drop a few hints that I like him.
Well, if I liked the guy, I would probably start telling some of my silly stories and funny jokes, because a guy is no good if they do not have a sense of humor. If I didn't like the guy...then I would get some exercise by walking away.
I would probably say "Hi. It seems my friends and your friends wanted us to be alone together. What do you think?"
I'd probably go bright red, stutter like a complete Fool (with a capital F) until he walked away laughing. Duh.
I would start a conversation up about sports, school, friends, and ask questions that require more than a “yes or no” answer—that way we can talk more and when it was time to see my friends again, I would just smile and leave them hanging on what happened.
“Umm, Hi, nice weather we’re having, don’t you think? And I was wondering ‘cause it’s a nice day, well, do ya wanna do anything?”
I'd play it totally cool. I make him work for it [i.e. conversation, sitting beside me, etc.] I'd let him know just a little about myself to get him hooked. Hopefully he'll just keep on coming back!!!
I’d ask for his screen name and tell him I would IM him later that night. That way we can talk with no pressure face-to-face quite yet.
I'd say:
"So, honesty is best. I like you. How about you?"
If he said yes we would date. If he said no then it wasn't meant to be. Sorted!
|
|
Listed below is the tally of what SmartGirls said was most important to them in a relationship. Personality came in first place with 69.45% of the votes!
|
| Which is most important to you? |
|
|
count | percent |
|
Imp.
|
| Looks |
261 | 19.3 |
| Personality |
939 | 69.45 |
| Money |
8 | 0.59 |
| Popular |
20 | 1.48 |
| Intelligence |
44 | 3.25 |
| Athletic |
9 | 0.67 |
| Age |
36 | 2.66 |
| Spirituality |
9 | 0.67 |
| other |
26 | 1.92 |
|
|
Personality is always first because they could look gorgeous but could be a right pig!!!! You never know.
I know I may seem way shallow, but be real. When you first meet someone you base it on physical attraction because you don’t know the person so you must like the way that they look first before wanting to get to know their personality.
Since a boy's gotta stand up for his women and he has to have muscles!
You can't possibly enjoy being around someone who isn't funny/nice/etc. (personality). Good looks are just a benefit.
Popular for sure…because to be popular there has to be a reason why people like him, so he would probably be nice looking and have a good personality.
When I go out I want to be seen with a nice looking guy.
If a guy is cute but has a bad personality, it makes him look ugly.
Well here are my rules… first you need someone that is either the same age as yourself or maybe 1 or 2 years younger or older. Make sure they are not too much older or younger because that can get you into trouble. Second you need to see what their personality is like because if you find that they are too aggressive or too quiet you might not want to be with them. Lastly I think that looks definitely matter because why go out with someone who doesn’t attract you?
|
Picture this: Your dream guy/girl asks you out on a date. You decide to impress them by wearing a nice outfit because they have asked you out to dinner. Your date shows up wearing a t-shirt and grubby old jeans, while you are dressed in your trendiest new outfit. What do you do? Here's some of the things you said you would do...
Say I wasn't sure where we where going so I dressed a little over. Then I would rush up stairs change come downstairs, and leave it all behind like it never happened.
I would go on the date, but I would be skeptical because I would wonder why he did not care to make a good first impression of himself for me.
I would tell him that my mom made me wear it! Or else I would make up an excuse like “Sorry I just got back from my aunt’s (or a family reunion) and I need to go change, I’ll be just a minute”.
Smile sweetly, and think to myself, ''girls always want to look trendy and boys want to make themselves look cool by wearing dirty clothes'', and carry on with the date.
Try to ignore his outfit and focus on other more important things.
I’d laugh it off, and enjoy myself anyway - this is my dream date here! But I'd also feel a bit disappointed that they didn't make much of an effort, so next time remember to make it clear how you are going to dress before you turn up!
I’d slam the door in his face because of he doesn't have the courtesy to look nice on a date, I'm not going to waste my time.
Raise my eyebrows and make a stupid joke like, “We're not going paint-balling afterwards are we?” but not really say anything else on the matter. (Maybe feel embarrassed that I didn't wear something less flashy).
|
|
When we asked our SmartGirls this question, most of you (48%) said that it didn't really matter. The second most common answer with 39% of the votes was "Yes, they build on each other's strengths and weaknesses. Having someone different can spruce things up". The smallest percentage with only 13% of the votes said that "No, its better to have someone similar to you, that way your friends can always hang out".
|
| Do you think opposites attract? |
|
|
Told him on the school speaker that I wanted to see him after class.
I got my friend to call his recent girlfriend and tell her she saw him with another girl. I know it's bad, I wish I could take it back, but I can't. I promise...no, SWEAR I won't do it again!
Once I saw my crush outside playing basketball and he looked really good. I took an hour getting ready so that I could just go sit outside and pretend to write in my journal but for real I just wanted to watch him play.
I pretended that his girlfriend tripped me up and hurt my leg so he would fuss over me. He was annoyed at his girlfriend and she was annoyed with him, so they broke up and now the guy is a good friend of mine!
My best friend and I set up this different email address and wrote to him as twins from England. He totally fell for it and we flirted and wrote each other for like a month or so.
I left love letters in his mailbox but I wouldn't say who sent them. It turns out on the bus he was talking about them and everyone thought it was so stupid! Good thing I never fessed up!
|
I was training at Kung fu and was partnered with the fittest gut there who was a year older, you had to get them on the floor and sit on them, I did this successfully but then let out a huge fart when I was on him!
I was at my cousin’s graduation party and my crush was there since he was a good friend of my cousin. He was sitting on a bench a little ways away from me so I leaned back to catch a look at him and I fell off the bench and ended up with the hot dog I was eating in my face.
I was trying to show her my sweet side by petting one of the animals and I ended up getting head butted by a goat in a very painful part of the anatomy!
|
Picture this: Your best friend has started to date someone that you absolutely hate, but you have never seen your friend happier in his or her entire life. One Friday night at the mall you see your best friend's boyfriend/girlfriend flirting and getting someone else's digits. What would you do in this situation? Here's what some of you said...
I would first talk to the boyfriend/girlfriend about it, and if he/she doesn't stop then I'd have to tell my best friend, even though it'd be hard.
I would tell my friend, regardless of whether they believed me or not. If not they would just have to find out the hard way.
I'd hurry up and buy a disposable camera and take a picture of them. Then I’d show the picture to my friend.
I’d want to get all the facts...you never know what the situation could be. Then I would confront my friend’s boyfriend and get him to spill whatever the truth is about the situation to his girlfriend (my best friend).
I would mind my own business. Less stress for me.
Walk up to him and tell him to, “…take a huge guess on who I’m about to call,” and then tell the other girl about his GF.
|
We showed SmartGirls the statement "I believe that being friends with your ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend is important". Here are the results...
55% agreed with this statement,
26% strongly agreed with this statement,
13% disagreed with the statement, and
6% strongly disagreed.
I guess most of you believe that being friends is better than nothing at all!
|
| I believe that being friends with your ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend is important. |
|
|
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts
with us!
Please remember that all web-based polls
are not scientific because the pollsters cannot randomly select the
respondents to participate in the surveys.
All our surveys are anonymous; check out our privacy
policy. All data copyright 1996-2000.
|
|
