Love at first sight by HSD Hochschule Düsseldorf

People are looking for love - be it through chance encounters, dating apps or traditional dates.
The belief in love at first sight is widespread, but what criteria do we use to choose our partners?
Which characteristics are decisive and are there patterns in our preferences? This data story is
based on real data from a speed dating experiment and focuses on which attributes influence the
choice of partner.
The data was collected at an American university between 2002 and 2004. 277 men and 274
women took part and met in several rounds for short, four-minute dates.
As part of the experiment, data was collected on the participants' preferences on a potential
partner and assessments of their individual attributes in six categories: attractiveness, sincerity,
intelligence, fun, ambition and shared interests.
Within this datastory, users can consider the stated preferences of the genders with regard to
these attributes on the one hand and, on the other hand, explore part of the data set.
Which attributes have the strongest influence on the decision for a second date? Are there
differences in the weighting of these factors between men and women? Can certain patterns or
unexpected correlations be recognised?
In the end, love is so individual that no data set in the world can decode it. Nevertheless, this
datastory invites users to reflect on the mechanisms of partner selection and to question which
factors really count beyond romantic ideals.