Begging economists and dating app designers to understand that the problems with the dating market are not a matching problem but a clearing problem. It's very tempting to think that if one could devise a sufficiently clever algorithm they could solve these problems but it's simply barking up the wrong tree.

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joegibbs 43 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

Perhaps then the government could spend money producing propaganda to convince people to lower their standards. Maybe they could fund TV shows about unattractive people with no money having a good time together - I think China is doing something similar.

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an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

[deleted]

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jfengel an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

What's a clearing problem? (A quick Google did not turn up an answer.)

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missedthecue an hour ago | parent | next [-]

It's tempting to think of the problems of a dating market as a matching problem because men and women are almost equal in numbers so we just have to match them all up. A clearing problem occurs in markets, (even markets with ~equal supply and demand) when the reserve price of the transaction is not met. For example, the reason I don't own a Ferrari isn't because there isn't 1 Ferrari out there for sale, it's because I don't have enough cash to clear the transaction. Building a more powerful car sales website won't fix this problem. The reserve price is not met.

The dating market is similarly full of people who would like to clear transactions (economist speak for form a relationship), yet cannot because they do not meet the reserve price of those they want to date.

I hope my Ferrari analogy helps to illustrate the core concept, but you have realize that dating markets are even tougher than car markets, because dating is a barter market. For a transaction to clear, there needs to be a double coincidence of wants -- you can't simply use a medium of exchange like dollars to cut the transaction in half. Imagine if to buy a Ferrari you had to find a seller who also happened to need $350k worth of Linux sysadmin work done.

	▲	s1artibartfast 36 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		This seems to raise the question of why there is a clearing problem. Is it fair to say a clearing problem is a missmatch of expectations? It seems to me that people are simultaneously becoming more specific and demanding, while simultaneously seeking risk aversion and comfort

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kylecazar an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I think they meant post-match personal incompatibilities exist that can't be accounted for in even the most thorough profile

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dotcoma an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

[flagged]

	▲	truculent an hour ago \| parent [-]
		> the problems with the dating market are not a matching problem but a clearing problem. > In markets, it can mean buyers and sellers aren’t being matched at the expected price/quantity.

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dotcoma an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

So why, in your opinion, do people not finalise the deal?

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missedthecue an hour ago | parent | next [-]

They do not want to.

More specifically, they would rather be single than pair with any of the options that are realistically available to them. Hence, the market fails to clear.

	▲	dotcoma an hour ago \| parent [-]
		I agree. I sure hope their government will not step in at that point and offer too many incentives to get married and disincentives to stay single, but I would not rule out this is exactly part of the plan...

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porphyra an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

too kiasu