To fit a changing society, the conventional ways we date and mate have given way to brand new methods. People nowadays marry later in life, choose not to marry at all, seek partners after divorce, outlive spouses, relocate to new areas and even endure pandemics. This signifies that we are moving toward larger dating pools, something made possible through public personal advertising.
This text details personal advertising in print and digital media, as well as online dating services, speed dating, the use of mobile dating apps and other topics. Interviews reveal the appeal and limitations of personal advertising for meeting people. This book offers a window into the development of trust and relationships, as well as the increasing role technology plays in shaping how people meet and mate in the modern world.

Pamela Anne Quiroz is currently, the executive director of the national consortium, the Inter University Program on Latino Research, director of the University of Houston's Center for Mexican American Studies and CLASS Distinguished Professor of sociology. Her research focuses on identity, family and youth.

Table of Contents


Acknowledgments

Tables

Introduction: Personal Advertising: Dating, Mating, and Relating in Modern Society

1.¿From ­­­Mail-Order and Picture Brides to Dating Apps and Couples Massage: The Evolution of Personal Advertising

2.¿"Can't Buy Me Love?": The Intersection of Romance with Science and Commerce

3.¿"Doing Identity" in Personal Advertising

4.¿The Color of Love: Black and Latina Ad Placers

5.¿Building Trust in a Distrusting Society

6.¿Speed Dating: The Adult Version of Musical Chairs

7.¿Serendipity in Personal Advertising: Couples Yoga, Couples Massage and Adult Dating "Classes"

8.¿Dating Apps: Finding Love Just Around the Corner

9.¿Personal Advertising in the Age of ­­­Covid-19

Appendix: Methods

Sociological Studies of Personal Ads

Chapter Notes

Bibliography

Index