Women are more discerning on dating apps when it comes to one particular personal attribute, a new study has found.
The study conducted by researchers at Australia's Queensland University of Technology, published in the Psychological Sciences journal, found that women are more likely than men to seek a certain level of education in a prospective partner.
The study, which tracked nearly 42,000 people aged between 18 and 80 using the dating website RSVP, found that women aged between 18 and 30 are the most likely to stipulate a certain level of education.
But when men and women reach the age of 40, the study found, the importance they place on a prospective partner's education level changes: men actually become more picky about it than women.
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The study's co-author Dr Stephen Whyte noted that the age at which women are most concerned about a partner's education level correlates with their years of peak fertility.
"Previous online dating research has demonstrated similar or higher women's preference for education level in a mate, but as our data encompasses a range of ages between 18 and 80, we are able to comprehensively show how those preferences change across the reproductive life cycle," he told HuffPost.
"Evolution favours women who are highly selective about their mates and in many cultures, women have been shown to use education as an indicator of quality because it is often associated with social status and intelligence — both attributes that are highly sought after."
As dating apps become increasingly ingrained in our everyday lives, new studies are revealing many more fascinating insights into how we use them. A recent study found, rather surprisingly, that dating app users aren't having any more sex than the rest of the population.
Meanwhile, another study has found that dating online could actually make you a better dater IRL.
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