Written by William Gossett
Today, the Internet offers almost everything, even a marriage partner. But according to a recent study done by Michigan State University, couples that meet online, tend to suffer from poor relationships and are more likely to separate within the first year.
This analysis, conducted by Aditi Paul, a doctoral candidate at Michigan State University’s Department of Communications, used survey data from 4,000 adults between 2009 and 2013. Aditi challenges an earlier study done by the University of Chicago, which implied that online relationships were stronger than conventional ones. Ironically enough, the dating site, eHarmony, funded the previous study.
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Online, people one can search for future spouses according to their tastes in music, food, job, culture, and more. However, in the process, marriage is cheapened. The search for a spouse becomes a plug and play scenario: select husband or wife, insert into life, and go.
Rather than understanding the reality of marriage, which entails sacrifice and work, the idea of finding one’s “soul-mate” plays into a romantic and sentimental fantasy about marriage. People think that they are going to live a perfect life, happily ever after, based on a profile description on some website.
Also, profile descriptions can be misleading. More times than not, people provide false or inaccurate information, which has a damaging affect upon a marriage.
Although marriages are affected, the moral problem continues to worsen. The study also suggested that those who date online are less willing to marry. CEO Sam Yagan of Match.com gives a clear answer as to why. He says people know they can quickly find someone else if their relationship goes bad. The sense of commitment and permanence are cast aside, while passions and pleasure are gratified.
The consequences of a lack of commitment weigh heavily upon society. Families become broken, not allowing the children to receive the proper and affectionate formation, spouses suffer from the break, and since the family is a necessary pillar of civilization, society is affected and suffers accordingly.
The online dating sensation only fosters a craze with destructive results. It should serve to 
highlight that one cannot live life based on appearances and passions, but rather on morals and reason. Only then will society be able to function properly and flourish.