plenty of fish - online dating

Exclusive Dating? OK to date more than one?

Is it wrong to date several people during the same time period or should a person date each person one at a time? This question was asked of Christian singles on an online Christian singles dating site. Here are their responses:

Female - Age Range: 21-30 I really think the answer to this question depends a great deal upon what it meant by the term 'dating.' when our grandparents were teens, dating meant spending time with one whom was considered to be a possibility for a marriage partner. In the 21st century, it is highly unlikely that anyone in the the US will marry someone that they do not first date. However, dating by today's standards is totally different than it was fifty years ago. Today people will often refer to having dinner with someone of the opposite sex as having a 'date.'

If the purpose of dating is merely to increase one's number of friends, dating several people at once is perfectly fine. However, if one of the individuals in the dating relationship feels that the the relationship is more than just friendship, then it is unwise to go on dates with others as well. The key here is communication. It is important to communicate one's expectations of the current 'dating' relationship as well as how outside 'dates' would be perceived.

I personally don't like the idea of dating. I hold strongly to the idea that two people ought to be able to become friends while with a group of others. Dating as it is done today simply encourages acting as someone that may not be a reality. Interacting in a group takes the pressure off of individuals to entertain each other and leads to healthy interaction and friendship building, which is what marriage should be all about.

Female - Age Range: 21-30 I think the Lord asks us to be single hearted for him, why not in dating too?

Female - Age Range: 31-40 It should be understood that dating is a getting-to-know-me/you period and not an established relationship. Except it's love-at-first-sight, that level of understanding should be established between the dating partners, so that either is free to date another person if he/she chooses to. It is not wrong to date more than one person simultaneously, and the age doesn't matter, as everyone has a preference and a particular taste.

Female - Age Range: 31-40 Yes it is wrong. I choose who to date based on my assessment of the person in a preliminary platonic stage. At this preliminary stage, I am free to get to know several people at the same time, because I have a detached non-emotional relationship with each person. I use this time to eliminate all but one person, and that is the sole person that I date.

At this dating stage I need to be in an exclusive relationship because both of us are investing our emotions in this relationship and we have high expectation of each other and of ourselves and christians. We would be deceiving each date if we are secretly seeing other people at the same time and that is not a christian way to conduct our lives.

Female - Age Range: 41-50 Yes. I believe it is wrong, especially if there was a mutual agreement not to. Also, by dating and talking with more that one person it brings about confusion therefore not allowing the relationship a fair chance to mature and progress as it will or will not. Besides, most people know within a few days of talking if there is a relationship worth pursuing.

Female - Age Range: 41-50 It is to difficult to remember what you have and haven't shared with several people at a time. It is extremely time consuming and is confusing to ones emotions. If one has any integrity it will not be a reasonable option.

Female - Age Range: 41-50 I believe that if you are looking for a special someone to settle down with you should investigate the spiritual qualities and morals in the individual. There's nothing wrong with a casual dinner, drive or walk with the same person on a couple of occasions. But one must be careful not to lead the other person on if it's not their intention. On the other hand some people prefer to date one at a time but through it all whether it be a good catch or not, at least we would have met a new friend.

Female - Age Range: 41-50 I don't think there is anything wrong with dating more than one person at once, as long as it stays on a friendship basis. Once it moves into something more serious then one should be exclusive. I would love the opportunity to date more than one, but dating one even, is a challenge in the 40 something years! When I was 18 (a very long time ago), I had more than one date with different guys on some weekends. The years and a few pounds have sure made a difference. The thing is I am more fun than I was then, I can cook better and am a whole lot wiser and even a better sense of humor, although a bit cynical at times.

The other big change is a mature walk with the Lord and we talk about everything. It is good to have the only absolutely dependable being as my best friend at my side at all times.

Female - Age Range: 41-50 I believe it is quite possible to be 'going out' with several people at the same time as long as all parties are aware of what is happening. Honesty and integrity does allow for getting to know several people at the same time. The main ingredient is to be honest and treat all parties with Christian respect and concern. Once a relationship gets to the point of being exclusive, it is definitely inappropriate to be seeing more than one person at a time.

Male - Age Range: 21-30 I being a man and speaking with experience feel it's okay to date several people at one time, if those people are in an area where they will never see you dating someone else. You limit yourself if you just do one person at a time. After all, it is a way of finding out the person you like better.

Women on the other hand, I know from experience if she finds out her man is dating someone else, she will either dump him or start a catfight with the other woman.

Nannette Thacker is the owner of http://www.ChristianSinglesDating.com, a site designed to help conservative Christians find one another via a detailed relationship profile. Nannette also owns http://www.ShiningStar.net, where she specializes in ASP.NET web application development and provides tutorials on many topics.

MORE ARTICLES:

Meet Market Adventures Survey Finds Majority Will Invite Significant Other Home for Holidays After Dating Less than One Year
According to a new survey from Meet Market Adventures, 86 percent of singles would invite a significant other to spend the holidays with their family after dating less than one year.

Internet Dating - Its Not For Geeks
Six months ago an old school friend and I were chatting over coffee, putting the world to rights as women do. She was bemoaning her lack of success in meeting the "right sort" of men.

The Fitness Personals -- the Fitness and Dating Experts Have Taken Noticed
Resident professionals and experts have been brought on to TheFitnessPersonals.com team to write articles and give tips on dating and fitness. This new addition, accessible by both members and visitors alike is a clear display on how TheFitnessPersonals.com is committed to helping and serving the world of active adults.

How To Get Success When Online Dating Russian Women
You can have a lot of online dating Russian women fun. You can meet Russian brides who become your friends and those who may become more than just friends with you. Many Russian women have met their significant others at a dating service online. Internet Dating can be fun, but you must make sure you follow these simple rules:

Looking for the Cat's Meow? Cat Lovers Meet at New Dating Web Site, PURRsonals.com
PURRsonals.com, a dating Web site for cat lovers, launches as a social networking community for singles who wish to share their pet stories with others.

The Mature Dating Vector: More than Speed=Rate*Time
Dating can be a lot like physics, only people like to make it more complicated?like a soap opera. The truth, when the drama boils out however is that melodramatic pretenses of being swept off your feet by Carlos de La Vega or taking a bullet for Rosalinda Martinelli never really did anyone any good---at least not when it's shown on ABC.

Limitless possibilities through free online dating
Due to the convenience of virtual communication and online socializing, online dating has been growing steady fast over the years. In fact, international online dating memberships show that online dating grows 20 percent yearly. Statistics shows that in the United States alone, nearly 40 million Americans are currently subscribed to at least one online dating service. Surveys also show that over $300 million is spent annually for online dating and with over 800 online dating sites in the Internet today, this figure is expected to grow double in the coming years.

Online Dating Singles Advice: Become a Australian Marriage Statistic
The average Australian family no longer necessarily consists of a mother, father and children In today?s society we find a variety of different set ups living happily side by side

Free Dating Web Site : Its Free And You Should Use It
A free dating web site allows you to meet and greet other singles who share interests and personality types Almost anyone can take advantage of this feature

Dating Outdated? Relationship Coach Offers Break Up Advice in Time For Summer Flings
In a recent interview, a successful relationship author and coach recalls how a string of failed relationships ultimately led her to her passion profession and how she's now an advocate for those going through breakups of their own.

FreeDateClub.com Stands to Become One of North America's Largest Free Online Dating Site In Less Than Two Years of Business
After almost two full years in business FreeDateClub.com has become a major competitive force in the free online dating industry with hard work, a total dedication to its free dating site members and by adding constant updates to its free dating site so the single men and women members keep coming back.

The Reality of Attraction and Dating in a Post Modern Society
Many men today are confused as to how to attract and deal with women. Today our women are more beautiful (through natural selection and beautification), capable and empowered than at any point in history, and though this is a wonderful thing, it's had many ramifications when it comes to relationships.

Five great online dating tips or how to make most from online dating
Do you know that approximately 2 of 5 singles use some kind of online dating services. And that's about 40 percents of all singles. Unfortunately, the percentage of the people who really find romance and love in such a way is less than 10 of people on the dating site only search for other members who have provided a picture of themselves. You want to see what other potential partners look like so it's a simple logic that other people will want to know what you look like too. If your photo isn't recent or isn't a great likeness of you, you can always say so in your profile.

Copenda's New Features Ease Communication Across Social Networking and Dating Sites
Copenda's new features allow for seamless interaction between social sites. Copenda allows users to cross-search leading social networks to find their friends, singles for dating, people with similar interests and more.