Being single again for the first time in a hot minute, I decided to do some research on the world out there that awaits us lonely wanderers — what the dating experts say on relationships. In doing so, I uncovered some interesting, alarming and a couple sadly unsurprising statistics. Some of them confirmed awful fears (and made the feminist in me cringe) and others made me want to hi-five a million angels.
I don’t personally agree with all of these things (and some of it’s a little dubious to me), but here’s what the “experts” say about dating. As they say, knowledge is power:
1. You can’t put a timeline on a relationship, and there’s no telling when exclusivity is right for you, but according to a study from Lisa Daily, most couples get into an “exclusive” relationship after 6 to 8 dates.
2. Daily’s study also suggests that men know when they’re falling for someone as soon as three dates in. Women take longer, reporting the same feelings around date 14. Interestingly, that’s exactly the same time that most couples say they exchange keys to each other’s homes: between the 12th and 14th date.
3. Singledom is inertia. According to a commonly cited statistic from Neil Clark Warren, over half of people who report their relationship status as “single” say they haven’t been on a date in two years. There’s potentially a reason for this. When polled, 40% of men say that they are “scared” when first interacting with a potential mate.