The uniqueness of this dating style is what made student Alyce Odasso interested in conducting a non-traditional speed dating event on campus. Odasso is a behavioral science major graduating this April. Needing a project for her senior honors thesis, speed dating caught Odasso’s attention.
“It’s actually not something that I’ve ever actually seen before, so I was surprised when I found out that people were really interested in speed dating,” Odasso said. “I love school and I try to get involved in as many like research opportunities as I can.”
Though planning for this project began last summer, due to a scheduling issue, the event could not be scheduled until February. The event, held Feb. 25 and 26, will be non-traditional speed dating from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Sorensen Student Center.
Non-traditional in this case will mean participants will not actually see their date until the end, when they will be given their date’s contact information and a picture.
“There have been a lot of speed dating studies done in the past 5 to 8 years [which] is when it’s gotten really popular, but no ones ever done it like I’m doing it, where it’s with real people but you don’t see them, so it’s kind of a different twist on it,” Odasso said.
A separate study, published in 2011 by professors Alison Lenton of the University of Edinburgh and Marco Francesconi of the University of Essex, discovered the quality of choosing dates when there is a time constraint goes down, but even then, participants are still able to see each other.
According to Lenton and Francesconi, dating in contexts in which time is limited, choice variety in suitors rather than choice quality, is confusing and potentially detrimental to date choice.
Odasso could not release a hypothesis, however, her research will be published and will be available in the library sometime in late April.
For more information or to participate in the speed dating event, email Alyce Odasso at alycejanine@gmail.com.
