FabSwingers.com forum: We experiment on human beings

By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

OKCupid the internet dating site have admitted that they have done psychological experiments on their users.

One of their 'experiments' was telling pairs of people who might have made great matches that they weren't actually good for each other, or telling people they were a match when they really weren't.

In another experiment, OKCupid ran profiles with pictures and no profile text for half of its test subjects, and vice versa for the rest. The results showed that people responded solely to the pictures. (Because we are evidently all incredibly shallow...?!) For potential daters, the OKCupid founder said that "your actual words are worth… almost nothing".

Interesting experiment... or........?

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By *renchbambi xWoman
over a year ago

Need to know basis

Speechless!!!

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By *entaur_UKMan
over a year ago

Cannock

Well at least i know to stay clear of that site now if that is the kind of thing they get upto experimenting on their members?

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By *inaTitzTV/TS
over a year ago

Titz Towers, North Notts

"Speechless!!!

On that site it wouldn't seem to matter if you were speechless.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

[Removed by poster at 29/07/14 20:29:50]

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By *bi HaiveMan
Forum Mod
over a year ago

Cheeseville, Somerset

Saw that on the BBC site earlier today.

Doesn't surprise me.

Bookface have been doing 'social experiments' for years, adult dating sites have been using fake profiles, and people will always be drawn more to images than the written word - a face is individual whereas words could have been written by anyone.

I'd be surprised if there aren't as many people who now don't give a toss about the manipulation as there are those who feel wronged.

It actually makes me chuckle that they did it!

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By *ngieandMrManCouple
over a year ago

hereford

If we consider taht when the letters in a wrod get mixed up we tend not to notice. It seems that our brian will put thnigs in the corrcet order prvoided that the word at laest starts and ends with the correct letter.

When I first used Windows 7, it drove me mad trying to find 'My Computer' on the start menu, I just could not see it. The reason was, it had been changed from 'My Computer' to just 'Computer', all of a sudden my brain just couldn't see the word/phrase.

It seems that we are very image orientated, meaning we don't so much read words as recognise the 'image' of a word.

We often read in these forums, 'Why are people too lazy to read my profile, instead they go straight for the pictures!'

Well maybe there is more to that than meets the eye (no pun). Perhaps we are by default attracted more so to images than text. Maybe not just because its something nice to look at but maybe because our brains perceive there is more information about the person in the image?

'Are we all shallow'? Sure some people are but in the end either the object or person brings pleasure to our vision or it doesn't. Our brains will deduce either pleasure or discomfort from any of our senses, smell, taste, sound, vision

To gain pleasure or discomfort from the written word we have to take the time to read it. With an image the results tend to be instant.

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By *icketysplitsWoman
over a year ago

Way over Yonder, that's where I'm bound

You give your permission for these unethical experiments in the terms and conditions, buried somewhere in line 2547.

The FBook one was discussed on R4 recently.

I don't know the site but if it's one you pay for then it seems an even worse abuse.

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By *icecouple561Couple
Forum Mod
over a year ago

East Sussex

What was the Facebook one?

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Cupid stunt !

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By *bi HaiveMan
Forum Mod
over a year ago

Cheeseville, Somerset

"What was the Facebook one?"

From The Daily Mail, 3rd July! (I don't read it - blame google! )

"The chief operating officer of Facebook has apologised for the manipulation of 700,000 users' accounts in a controversial secret study.

Sheryl Sandberg's comments were the first from a Facebook executive since it was revealed that the social network altered users' newsfeeds to see if it had an effect on their emotions.

It was also a climb down from Tuesday's insistence that it was an experiment covered by the network's terms and conditions.

It emerged at the weekend, when the experiment's results were revealed in a paper published in a journal, that Facebook allowed researchers to manipulate the content that appeared in the main section, or news feed of about 700,000 randomly selected users during a single week in January 2012.

The data-scientists were trying to collect evidence to prove their thesis that people's moods could spread like an 'emotional contagion' depending on the type of the content that they were reading.

None of the participants in the Facebook experiments were explicitly asked for their permission, though the social network's terms of use appears to allow for the company to manipulate what appears in users' news feeds however it sees fits.

Facebook's data-use policy says the California-based company can deploy user information for 'internal operations, including troubleshooting, data analysis, testing, research and service improvement."

Glad I don't do Bookface!

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By *icecouple561Couple
Forum Mod
over a year ago

East Sussex

Blooming 'eck!

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"What was the Facebook one?

From The Daily Mail, 3rd July! (I don't read it - blame google! )

"The chief operating officer of Facebook has apologised for the manipulation of 700,000 users' accounts in a controversial secret study.

Sheryl Sandberg's comments were the first from a Facebook executive since it was revealed that the social network altered users' newsfeeds to see if it had an effect on their emotions.

It was also a climb down from Tuesday's insistence that it was an experiment covered by the network's terms and conditions.

The data-scientists were trying to collect evidence to prove their thesis that people's moods could spread like an 'emotional contagion' depending on the type of the content that they were reading.

Glad I don't do Bookface!

You do, by proxy

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Can't have experimented on me, I always mark down the pics with no profile.

Nothing to say means I ain't interested

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

The only question I have is why are we incredibly shallow to want to find someone attractive to have a relationship with them???

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By *bi HaiveMan
Forum Mod
over a year ago

Cheeseville, Somerset

"Blooming 'eck! "

Do you reckon it might be happening on here?

Maybe 'Rant Thursday' isn't the natural phenomena we think it is?

Maybe all the whiny status updates appear when folk log off and then vanish when they log back in?

Maybe all the BBW/VWE/BI/reply to message threads all come from one place?

Maybe Funky doesn't actually ever log in on a Thursday and that freaky avatar is actually some over-tanned Phd student from Sydney?

Who knows??

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By *icketysplitsWoman
over a year ago

Way over Yonder, that's where I'm bound

"Blooming 'eck!

Do you reckon it might be happening on here?

Maybe 'Rant Thursday' isn't the natural phenomena we think it is?

Maybe all the whiny status updates appear when folk log off and then vanish when they log back in?

Maybe all the BBW/VWE/BI/reply to message threads all come from one place?

Maybe Funky doesn't actually ever log in on a Thursday and that freaky avatar is actually some over-tanned Phd student from Sydney?

Who knows??

I was just about to post this.

I have thought some threads are started just to see how fast they can escalate to all out bans and 1-183 in under 5 minutes.

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By *bi HaiveMan
Forum Mod
over a year ago

Cheeseville, Somerset

"Blooming 'eck!

Do you reckon it might be happening on here?

Maybe 'Rant Thursday' isn't the natural phenomena we think it is?

Maybe all the whiny status updates appear when folk log off and then vanish when they log back in?

Maybe all the BBW/VWE/BI/reply to message threads all come from one place?

Maybe Funky doesn't actually ever log in on a Thursday and that freaky avatar is actually some over-tanned Phd student from Sydney?

Who knows??

I was just about to post this.

I have thought some threads are started just to see how fast they can escalate to all out bans and 1-183 in under 5 minutes.

I didn't post that!

Are you sure it wasn't you?

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By *icketysplitsWoman
over a year ago

Way over Yonder, that's where I'm bound

"Blooming 'eck!

Do you reckon it might be happening on here?

Maybe 'Rant Thursday' isn't the natural phenomena we think it is?

Maybe all the whiny status updates appear when folk log off and then vanish when they log back in?

Maybe all the BBW/VWE/BI/reply to message threads all come from one place?

Maybe Funky doesn't actually ever log in on a Thursday and that freaky avatar is actually some over-tanned Phd student from Sydney?

Who knows??

I was just about to post this.

I have thought some threads are started just to see how fast they can escalate to all out bans and 1-183 in under 5 minutes.

I didn't post that!

Are you sure it wasn't you?

I meant to say that the Thursday Deep Dark Soul Funky is the real Funky. It's the ones on the other days of the week you have to worry about.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Aren't we all experimenting on each other all the time on here ? Supermarkets etc are constantly monitoring our purchasing and has anyone actually been harmed in these experiments ? As long as no personal information is used I don't really care....but then maybe you do ?

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I care, I am a caring person

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"I care, I am a caring person"

This is good.

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By *ezebelWoman
over a year ago

North of The Wall - youll need your vest

Interesting experiment... or........?

or... the reason why rants about 'Why oh why oh why dont people read my profile...' are pointless??

Mind you, if Id paid for this 'ere dating site Id be mighty pissed off

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By *icketysplitsWoman
over a year ago

Way over Yonder, that's where I'm bound

Interesting experiment... or........?

or... the reason why rants about 'Why oh why oh why dont people read my profile...' are pointless??

Mind you, if Id paid for this 'ere dating site Id be mighty pissed off

And sue as they prevented Ms/Mr Right from contacting me.

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By *icolerobbieCouple
over a year ago

walsall

There doing it on here, i'm sure of it, single blokes keep sending me pics of their cock!

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By *icolerobbieCouple
over a year ago

walsall

There doing it on here, i'm sure of it, single blokes keep sending me pics of their cock!

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By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

Interesting experiment... or........?

or... the reason why rants about 'Why oh why oh why dont people read my profile...' are pointless??

Mind you, if Id paid for this 'ere dating site Id be mighty pissed off

I'd be pissed off if I was on there too.

But as an outsider... I find it really interesting. And the Facebook one too.

It's not an experiment on here (hmm course not) but often a thread will snowball depending on who posts and what they say in the first few posts.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

This story fascinated me but the end results were hardly suprising,we like images over words and we're open to suggestion by a site we have asked to match us up with compatable people

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By *ophieslutTV/TS
over a year ago

Central

We are manipulated and Id prefer it if it stopped at just being mild overt influence, rather than hidden and drastic as in this case. Especially where I pay for service I want the product to be honest and ethical.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Given some of my matches on POF recently I suspect that they too are having a laugh at my expense!

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