The effect of romantic rejection on subjectively perceived pain through online dating

The present study examined whether being romantically rejected in an online setting would evoke pain. An online dating site was set up in which pictures and dating profiles of potential partners were presented. Participants had to state whether they would like to go on a date with them. Afterwards, they were shown what judgement they had gotten from the potential partners. They had to indicate how painful and rewarding these judgements were to them. Eventually one of the four following conditions could be presented: rejection, a match, an unrequited condition and disinterest. Every condition showed to evoke pain. However, rejection showed to evoke significantly more pain compared to the other conditions. Therefore, it can be concluded that being rejected through online dating by someone you are interested in is painful to individuals. Gender, levels of social anxiety and levels of depression did not influence the pain experienced after rejection.