76% Of Women Date Older Men

Palm Desert, CA (PRWEB) September 4, 2006 -- In celebration of National Singles Week, September 17-23, It’s Just Lunch, the premier dating service for busy professionals, has released statistics from its Annual Report on Dating about singles, dating and age. According to a survey of 3,571 singles 76% of women date men that are at least 5 years older than them, while 80% of men date women that are at least 5 years younger than them.

“A lot of women that date older men are looking for stability and maturity,” said Alana Beyer, Vice President of It’s Just Lunch. “They want someone that is settled in their career, is a good care-taker and is serious about finding a significant other. Regardless of whether singles are dating someone older or younger 67% think 1-5 years is a practical age difference between couples.”

Of the 18% of men who prefer to date women that are older, 6% admit to having dated a single, older friend of their parents. When asked if they could date an older celebrity, 34% of men said their celebrity of choice would be Annette Benning, another 22% chose Diane Keaton. 62% of women said they would date Harrison Ford.

When asked which younger celebrity they would date, 26% of women chose Orlando Bloom, 24% said Jake Gyllenhaal and another 23% chose Nick Lachey. When posed with the same question, 33% of men said they would date Jessica Alba, while Scarlett Johanssen and Jessica Simpson came in tied at 21%.

About It’s Just Lunch
Since It’s Just Lunch was founded in 1991, the company has arranged millions of fun, first date lunches or drinks after work -- an atmosphere where singles can feel comfortable with the process of meeting a new person. With over 90 locations worldwide, each day IJL meets with clients one-on-one, then arranges hundreds of fun, first dates over lunch or drinks after work at over 1,500 restaurants. No photo or online profile for the world to see. With many introductions leading to second dates, It’s Just Lunch is the world’s leading first date authority.

The U.S. dating industry is estimated at nearly $1.5 billion, and growing at 25% annually, with 110 million single adults in the United States alone.

Dating and the Older Man