Is LinkedIn turning into the new Tinder? While it’s true you can’t swipe right on LinkedIn, you also can’t turn off unwanted DMs until after inappropriate contact has been made. According to a new survey from Passport Photo Online, 9 out of 10 female LinkedIn users report receiving romantic advances or inappropriate messages on the platform. Has networking taken on a new (and uncomfortable) meaning, for women on LinkedIn? Does advancing your career require you to entertain unwanted advances, if you are a female? And how are women responding?
According to a survey of over 1,000 LinkedIn users, the platform hasn’t turned into Tinder – yet. But there are already some uncomfortable similarities. According to the survey:
- Most out-of-line messages that slide into women’s DMs are propositions for romantic or sexual encounters (31%).
- When someone makes a move, female LinkedIn professionals (43%) usually confront and inform the sender they crossed the line.
- Getting hit on LinkedIn typically makes women annoyed (14.75%), indifferent (13.42%), or confused (13.22%).
- Around 43% of females using LinkedIn reported (on multiple occasions) users who tried to get all flirty. Have you been hit on, on LinkedIn?
- Nearly 74% of women on LinkedIn have at least once dialed down their activity on the platform due to others’ improper conduct.
While these statistics point towards unwanted connection (and misplaced affection) on LinkedIn, there’s another story emerging: namely, that men don’t know how to approach, communicate, or connect with the opposite sex. Has professionalism completely disappeared on social media? When we turn human connection into an app, something’s getting lost in translation. (Perhaps tact, and a little bit of class?) But what if the connection challenge is something deeper – something related to our inability to have appropriate and productive conversations between men and women?
Women Achieving More…Leaves Men Unsure?
The gender gap between men and women is widening, and that gap begins with educational levels. Today, only 40% of men are going to college, and it’s estimated that women will outnumber men by a ratio of 2:1 in less than 10 years. While the rationale and reasons for males not attending college are probably the subject of a book, not a Forbes post, the impact is troubling. Of course, going to college doesn’t prevent a guy from being a jerk, either online or in person. But consider that the TimesLeaderOnline reports that 70% of high school valedictorians are girls. A pattern is emerging: these educational accomplishments point to a widening gender gap – where men may lack the decorum, education and sensibility required for professional communication.
Relationships in Decline as Unwanted Advances Increase Online
A study from Indiana University, home of the Kinsey Institute, says that nearly 1 in 3 men, ages 18-24, report no sexual activity in the past year. “Our study adds to a growing body of research that has reported on declines in sex,” said Tsung-chieh “Jane” Fu, a research associate at the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington who co-led the study. “The declines in partnered sexual activity seen in our study are consistent with findings from studies in the U.K., Australia, Germany and Japan.”
While sex is not a measurement of fulfillment in a relationship, the research points to a level of frustration and misunderstanding that might be changing the way that people connect on LinkedIn. Have you experienced an unwanted advance, or inappropriate messaging, on the platform? Share your experience in the comments below.
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