Congratulations to PhD candidate Manlin Cai on publishing a lead-authored article in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, a leading journal in the field of relationship science!
In “The efficiency paradox: A temporal lens into online dating among Chinese immigrants in Canada,” Manlin and her co-authors—including UBC Sociology Professor Yue Qian—analyze 31 in-depth interviews with heterosexual Chinese immigrant online daters in Canada.
Their findings reveal how time-related expectations and experiences shaped their perceptions of (in)efficiency throughout different stages of online dating. In this “efficiency paradox,” the online daters find that the promise of efficiency not only runs counter to their lived realities but also amplifies perceptions of inefficiency. The study challenges the perceived efficiency of online dating and provides new insights into how digital technologies mediate intimate lives by shaping people’s temporal experiences.
