This Is How Your Parents Could Have Already Affected Your Online Dating Game

If you’re a Tinder trawler or searching for love on Plenty of Fish, your parents could have already affected your dating game… right from birth. No, we’re not talking genetics… that selfie can only take you so far. It seems it doesn’t really matter long you spend fixing your make-up or hair, because Prince Charming may never actually reach your profile. According to the latest research from Evidence Based Medicine, you have a better chance of catching a suitor’s eye if your name starts with a letter from the first half of the alphabet. With the world of online dating casting a whole new net for finding that perfect match, two researchers (one from London and the other from Texas) decided to pick their way through 86 studies on virtual love (or lust). We’ve been led to believe that love is nothing short of a numbers game – and the number seems to be lucky or unlucky thirteen. Apparently if you want to track down the man or woman of your dreams, you need your screen name (usually your actual given name) to be in the first half of the alphabet. According to the research, online daters subconsciously rank later-in-the-alphabet profiles as being less attractive than those that come earlier in the line-up. Speaking about the results, lead author on the study Khalid S.Khan wrote: “There is something in human nature that draws us to those at the top of any listing and this phenomenon, though not fully explained, has an impact on online dating. “Perhaps we give higher value to things that appear to be at the top of the pile.” Khan also suggested that people with the names from the first half of the alphabet also appear to enjoy greater success – as people spend longer looking through search criteria such as education or income. So what else did the study uncover? Well apparently responding too quickly to messages makes you look desperate, guys like screen names that highlight your physical attractiveness, yes you really can post too many selfies. Ladies, you have been warned.