It must be about education. Religious beliefs. Family Values. Political views. Income. Sexual chemistry. All reasonable answers. And all wrong.

According to Harvard data scientists analyzing more than a million OKCupid responses, the two strongest predictors were surprisingly:

• Do you like horror movies?
• Have you ever traveled around another country alone?

Meanwhile, sensible questions such as ‘Are you a morning person?’, ‘Do you exercise?’, or ‘Do you want children?’ barely moved the needle. (1) So now you know what to ask on a first date.

Here are some other findings.

• Which dating site is best? That depends on who you are. Some platforms allow anyone to message anyone. That works well if you are highly attractive. For older women—or for shorter, balding, slightly portly men—other sites work better: those that start with personality questionnaires and match users accordingly. In those cases, character carries more weight than looks. You may not resemble Margot Robbie or Brad Pitt, but you are still a catch, and the algorithm knows it. (2)
• Are people honest on dating sites? No. Back in 2005, men and women alike reported themselves to be about 2.5 centimeters taller than the national average. Men generally told the truth about their weight, but women claimed to be roughly 10 kilograms lighter than average. An astonishing 70% of women rated themselves as above average in attractiveness; men were not far behind at 67%. And 28% of women claimed to be blonde—well above the statistical norm in the USA. (3)
• What are online turn-offs? The biggest mistake is not posting a photo at all. For men, balding is often seen as a disadvantage, and the combover is a guaranteed libido killer. But there is a solution. During my time managing Gillette in CEEMEA [1], I learned that a shaved head is perceived as neutral. Today it has evolved into something more: a power look. Studies by Albert Mannes at the Wharton School suggest that men with shaved heads are perceived as more confident and authoritative. So, gentlemen, grab that razor!
• Finally, the eyes. That’s where attention ends up. Research at Procter & Gamble on leaflets revealed a simple hierarchy: people draw more attention than objects, faces more than people, and eyes more than anything else. For a more unusual confirmation, consider a documentary about the British tabloid The Sun. The editor responsible for selecting the famous Page 3 topless models—before the feature was discontinued in 2015—would cover everything except the eyes. His final decision came down to one thing: the look in them.

And who knows, if you are dating, these insights may help you find the love of your life!

Notes on Sources:

• Cyril Boucquet, Jean-Louis Barsoux & Michael Wade, Alien Thinking, p. 226.
• Mikołaj Jan Piskorski, A Social Strategy, Chapter 3.
• ‘Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner, Freakonomics, p. 81-83.

[1] Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa.