The dating app has provided empowering tools for communicating before, during and after the first date
BY NIC CROSARA, IMAGE BY HINGE
The world of modern dating can be overwhelming, especially when you are part of the LGBTQIA community. This is why it’s great to see dating app Hinge go above and beyond for its LGBTQIA users. Back in August, the app announced its educational guide on LGBTQIA dating and has since produced its hugely popular NFAQ (Not-so-Frequently Asked Questions) series which explores topics queer singles may be questioning such as sexuality, self-discovery and connection.
And today, Hinge has released its groundbreaking Beyond The Talking Stage report. Hinge’s researchers and dating experts conducted surveys to more than 14,000 LGBTQIA respondents and the results are truly insightful. Broken into three sections (The First Time, The First Date and The First Fight) the report offers tools for connection and communication before, during and after the first date.
In our February issue, DIVA investigated the experiences of bisexual women using dating apps. With bi-erasure and biphobia often being prevalent in the world of dating, it was great to see Hinge’s report shed some light on this and busts myths surrounding bisexuality.
The report findings showed that bisexual daters are three times more likely to have never had queer dating experience than other LGBTQIA daters. There can be a lot of nerves surrounding queer dating for the first time, but Hinge is here with good news: 80% of Hinge daters are open to being someone’s first queer dating experience.
57% of LGBTQIA Hinge daters shared that lack of communication was the biggest obstacle in their dating life in 2022. Fostering open communication, even before the first date, is a big focus of the report. It also sheds light on the realities of trans dating: 71% of trans daters plan to have the “expectation check”, laying out their expectations about the type of relationship (monogamous, non-monogamous, etc) they are looking for before meeting in person. Compared to any other LGBTQIA daters, trans daters are most likely to want you to check that they made it home and text first after the date.
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Hinge’s Love and Connection Expert, Moe Ari Brown (they/he) was instrumental in the creation of the report and shared their expertise throughout the project. Moe sat down with me via Zoom to run me through the report and it was clear how much passion Moe has for helping LGBTQIA folks to embrace their authentic selves while dating. When asked about the feedback Hinge has received from the LGBTQIA community, Moe tells me: “The feedback has been that people feel seen and celebrated. Especially after the launch of the Not So Frequently Asked Questions resource. More and more questions came in. I often end up reading comments on our posts on social media and people are really sharing positivity and feedback. People are feeling seen, so there’s a buzz that’s really crescendoing right now and people are really sharing that they feel celebrated by Hinge.”
You can read the full report here: hinge.co/press/2023-DATE-report/
DIVA magazine celebrates 28 years in print in 2022. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQIA media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
