The aim of our research is to explore the usage of Tinder (and other dating apps) among students at the University of Sheffield and explore whether it is for hook-ups or long-term relationships. 

Most university students have experienced dating in some capacity. The traditional and normative perspective of dating involves individuals meeting in-person and developing a relationship from there (Hanson, K.R, 2021, p. 83), however as technology has developed  dating has developed alongside it, becoming digitalised through the use of dating apps. There is a range of reasons for university students downloading dating apps, including friends/peers, entertainment, boredom, hook-ups and long-term commitments (Hanson, K.R., 2022, p.903). 

Upon conducting a literature review, we discovered a large proportion of research surrounding university students usage of Tinder and other dating apps, however we found a gap of knowledge of students from the University of Sheffield. Tinder has been associated with hook-up culture due to its app design and premise of matching people mainly based off appearance (Christensen, M. A., 2021, p.432). As dating and intimate relationships will always be a relevant topic, it is important to constantly research and develop on existing research. Therefore, we conducted four semi-structured interviews with University of Sheffield students to explore the experiences, opinions and perceptions surrounding dating apps. Participants were selected through connections of the interviewers and ranged in gender, sexual orientation and student status.

The research ultimately aims to find out whether university students use Tinder for hook-ups or long-term relationships (or alternative reasons) and will explore the different experiences that affect this.