Is this the one?

How many people should you date before settling for a serious relationship?

It's a tricky question, and as with many tricky questions, mathematics has an answer of sorts: it's 37%. Out of all the people you could possibly date, see about the first 37%, and then settle for the first person after that who's better than the ones you saw before (or wait for the very last one if such a person doesn't turn up).

Why is that a good strategy? You don't want to go for the very first person who comes along, even if they are great, because someone better might turn up later. On the other hand, you don't want to be too choosy: once you have rejected someone, you most likely won't get them back. But why 37%? It's simply a question of maximising probabilities.

To find out more, read Strategic dating.

What does this have to do with the animal theme of our advent calendar? Well it's loosely and metaphorically related to kissing frogs.

Return to the Plus advent calendar 2019.