Digital sociologist, Dr Rachel A. Katz from the University of Salford has been interviewed recently for the Guardian, in a story focusing on changes to the dating app, Bumble.
Rachel, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Health and Society has specialised her field of research around unexpected social outcomes of dating apps, such as Tinder, Grindr, and Bumble.
The popular dating app has made a significant change that will give men the chance to start messaging the women they match with, rather than women having to make the first move.
“I’ve been studying dating apps for a decade, ever since their explosion of popularity in 2014 and throughout challenges faced in the pandemic,” said Rachel
“Users of all dating apps frequently complain about their frustration when their chat conversations fail to start, go nowhere, or end in ghosting. Bumble has made quite a few recent changes to try to tackle this problem. I think having the feature so that women don’t have the burden to start the chat is a brave change, which Bumble hopes will lead to a better experience for all users.”
Rachel has been featured previously in media outlets ranging from the BBC and Dazed to The Sunday Times and Stylist magazine.
“It’s a pleasure to have my research featured across lots of different media, because it means I’m reaching a much wider audience, beyond academia. Sometimes people think dating apps are superficial, but it’s important for our research at Salford to capture their sociological and health impacts on individuals as well as how they influence society at a wider level.”
Read the full article here: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/article/2024/may/04/a-lot-of-effort-to-get-one-date-bumble-app-makes-womens-first-move-easier
drachelarielkatz.wixsite.com/info
For enquiries please email S.Mackean@Salford.ac.uk
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