What about dating and relationships on February 14, 2023? The current trends are presented in this overview.
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| Dating culture in Germany |
When it comes to today's Valentine's Day, it's commonly argued that it's merely a flower business creation. Even so! There's nothing wrong with helping out your neighborhood florist.
But how is love generated in the post-pandemic era, when many younger people have already had their first dates of their life through app, when genders are renegotiating their roles, and when the "woke" society is producing a new awareness of sensitivity - some would say: sensitivities? These are the current trends in love, dating, and relationships.
Valentine's Day: These trends exist in the love life of Germans
Normcore
Anyone who has subscribed to a music service like Spotify and has access to practically every song ever published is rapidly overwhelmed, and then listens to an old David Bowie album. It's the same with relationship models.
""There is a vast selection, anything is conceivable, and there are several bubbles adjacent to one other," bestselling author Anna Zimt ("Kick me! How I discovered how to acquire what I desire ", MVG). Many people rely on a flawed but ultimately successful model: the monogamous marriage relationship. In the Western world, it is still the most popular type of relationship.
Loyalty is still an essential virtue for 88 percent of women and 72 percent of men. Marriage is also not dead: there were 416,324 marriages in the United States in 2019, the year before the outbreak. According to the earliest polls, the figure was only exceeded the previous year and in 2000, and it will be achieved again in 2022.
Cinnamon
"A surprising number of couples have recognized how well they get along with one other during the lockdowns and have rediscovered each other." Marriages often endure at least 14.5 years on average, but unmarried partnerships last barely four. Isn't it tedious to cozy up in front of Netflix? No, say affluent monogamists. The closeness of a two-person exclusive relationship is the final big adventure.
Polyamorous Relationships
When Anna Zimt began discussing and writing about her open relationship with her present spouse 15 years ago (shared podcast: "Stories of an open relationship"), the Berliner-by-choice was met with a lot of skepticism. "Now, that's scarcely the case, at least in my city."
Around 10,000 people live in polyamorous relationships in Germany
Meanwhile, she and her spouse have entered a polyamorous relationship: "We are now open to emotional interactions with other individuals." However, the spouse remains the "primary relationship" in such frameworks. Estimates suggest that 10,000 individuals in Germany live in this manner. According to a Joyclub poll, twice as many members are currently in an open relationship as there were 18 years ago when the network first launched (14.7 percent). Polyamorous partnerships are also on the rise (from 2.8 percent to 7.5 percent).
Situationship
The morning after the first night - the characteristics of the relationship's trajectory are already visible in its dramaturgy. According to sociologist Jean-Claude Kaufmann, the sooner two individuals at this stage become a pair, the sooner they share ordinary items and appear together in public.
The point at which they feel they are "in partnership" is typically acknowledged tacitly by both of them. Many people are postponing this modest, major turning moment these days. You're stuck in limbo: you meet, have sex, but no relationship yet.
According to a poll conducted in the United States, 20% of adults under the age of 35 are in a so-called situationship. This can be an agonizing state of ambiguity if one of the persons involved has more serious intentions. However, as sex therapist Rafaella Fiallo puts it, "a situationship affords room for growth and introspection and enables time to define your relationship without societal pressure."
Analog dating
"I'm getting bored of dating apps," admits Anna Zimt. "Many users are frustrated by unreliability and ghosting." Instead, many individuals want to go out again after the pandemic. The meal where the host seeks to match two buddies is especially popular. Instead of spending hours in the app searching for as many matches as possible, this is a great way to spend an evening practicing being a kind and open-minded person.
Source: Berlin Morgen Post