Effects of Relationship Goal on Linguistic Behavior in Online Dating Profiles: A Multi-Method Approach

This study uses two methods to examine whether online daters looking for a long-term relationship behave linguistically different in their profile texts compared to daters seeking casual relationships. To investigate these linguistic differences, 12,310 existing Dutch dating profiles were analyzed using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) program and a word-based classifier. Results of both methods suggest there are reliable differences in the linguistic behavior long-term and casual relationship seekers employ in their dating profiles: long-term relationship seekers mention more topics that are relevant when looking for a long- term relationship, such as internal personality traits and qualities. Additionally, long-term relationship seekers seem to self-disclose more in their profile texts by providing more personal information and using more I-references. Profile texts of casual relationship seekers are more diffuse and harder to classify. Moreover, the study demonstrates that using a multi-method approach, with LIWC and a data-driven word-based classifier, provides a deeper understanding of linguistic differences between the two relationship seeking groups.