Is the prospect of being alone so horrifying that we would submit our kinkiness levels and full names in the same survey? Apparently so…
Amid the chaos of assignments, social events and existential crises, there’s a societal expectation that finding a significant other and navigating love are crucial checkpoints in the collegiate journey. For the people feeling the pressure to couple up because everyone else is, this survey could be the answer you are looking for.
At 2 p.m. this past Tuesday, the Yale Marriage Pact went live. Created by Stanford students in 2017 for an Econ class project, Marriage Pact analyzes your data alongside others to find your “perfect match.”
I was cramming for an end-of-term “midterm” late Tuesday night when I received the text from my suitemate. I was skeptical at first, but if 500 other people filled it out, I was willing to take my chances, for research purposes of course.
The survey begins with the basics: sexual orientation, religious affiliation, political identity etc. Then it moves onto a series of 50 prompts where you rank your level of agreement from 1-7. The prompts range from “Everything will eventually be explained by science” to “I often rely on self deprecating humor.”
Knowing that your answers to questions about hard drugs, monogamy and political stances are compatible with those of others has the potential to be a great ice breaker, however, does it give too much away too soon? For me, dating is like one of those fossil dig kits; the tedious excavation is worth it for the enthralling fossils you dig up. Part of the fun of building a relationship is gradually getting to know your partner. I can’t help but wonder: have we traded the excitement of exploration for the comfort of algorithmic certainty?
Some may be approaching this as a genuine quest for love, envisioning a future with a potential match. Sure, it would be nice to meet your life partner at Yale, get married, pop out a couple of double-legacy babies and live happily ever after. But others may see it as a mere safety net — a backup plan in case Yale fails to deliver a fairy-tale romance the organic way.
But who’s to say this survey even works? It certainly is important to agree on fundamental values to have a successful marriage — not that, as a child of divorce, I would know what that looks like — but just because two people don’t agree on things doesn’t mean they aren’t compatible.
The Marriage Pact’s algorithmic matching methods contradict the age-old adage that “opposites attract.” The survey’s emphasis on aligning answers will lead to the paradoxical situation where people with identical responses are deemed the perfect match. In reality, a harmonious relationship isn’t always forged from carbon-copy preferences; sometimes, it’s the clash of differences that sparks the most genuine connections.
As the Dec. 12 survey deadline approaches, I’m anxiously awaiting my results. I don’t have high expectations for a match made by a computer, but who knows, maybe the result will prove me wrong.