I've been on Tinder for years but can't find a lasting relationship. Why is that?

“Those who use dating apps often encounter the choice paradox. If you have too many options, you can become overwhelmed with what's on offer and end up not making a choice.A wide range of potential partners may seem attractive, but in reality it can often be paralyzing for some. Limiting your options can be a welcome relief.”

Elisabeth Timmermans is a postdoctoral researcher at Erasmus University Rotterdam and fascinated by the influence of media and technology on our relationships.

"It's a bit harsh, but Tinder would rather not have you find your ideal partner," she writes in her book Love in the Time of Tinder. ‘The algorithm is just not trying to make it easy for you. The app doesn't want you to get off the street, because then it loses two users.'

According to the researcher, the makers of the app benefit more from short sexual or fleeting contacts so that  u keep coming back to the app and switch hungry to a paying subscription, continues. ‘That is why the makers focus so much on external characteristics.

Profile texts are additional and the search criteria are limited. Many users of the app will then have an on-again, off-again relationship with Tinder at some point. They start swiping lustfully, after which they get tired of it again. Until they hear a success story in their area and give it another chance or feel very lonely one night. For a moment.”