More than half of Singaporean singles open to meeting a partner through online dating: study

More than half of Singaporean singles (58 per cent) do not mind meeting their partner through online means in 2021. This is a 15 per cent increase as compared to survey results from 2016.

These are among the findings in the Marriage and Parenthood Survey 2021 commissioned by the National Population and Talent Division. Conducted from February to June 2021, the study included more than 5,800 Singapore residents aged between 21 to 45, of which 2,848 respondents were single (never-married) and 3,017 were married. 

It also found that 50 per cent of single respondents are not currently dating, and a significant portion of this group (38 per cent) have never dated before. 

The top three reasons why singles are not proactive in dating include having a limited social circle, not having opportunities to meet potential partners and preferring to leave dating to chance. 

Most singles aged 21-35 intend to marry, though this number has been on a downward trend, from 86 per cent in 2012 to 83 per cent in 2016 and 80 per cent in 2021. 

When asked about their ideal number of children, 92 per cent of married respondents said they are looking at having two or more children.

However, the top three reasons preventing them from having children were the financial cost, difficulty in managing work and family commitments and the lack of caregiving arrangements.

The survey also found that Flexible Work Arrangements (FWA) helped married couples to start a family and have more children. Ninety per cent of married respondents agreed that the availability of FWAs make it easier to start a family, while 81 per cent said that FWAs did indeed make it easier for them to have more children. 

Most Singaporeans feel that both parents play an important role when it comes to children. More than 90 per cent of married respondents agreed that both fathers and mothers are equally important as caregivers for their children and that they should share equal responsibility at home. 

An almost unanimous 97 per cent also agreed that paternity leave allows fathers to play a huge role in their newborn’s life and 77 per cent feel that the existence of paternity leave encourages them to have children. 

The survey also uncovered a lack of awareness of fertility health, as 70 per cent of married and single respondents have a misconception that assisted reproductive technologies like in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) would have high success rates for women above 40 years old, which is not the case.