How was dating like in 1960?

Answer 1

good but it has changed a lot

Prior to the 60s dating was different. It was not uncommon to DATE several people at once. Then eventually you would start "going steady" with a person (this usually, in highschool involved "Pinning" or the girl would perhaps start wearing the boy's jacket) It certainly wasn't as innocent as nostalgia would like to paint it but it was a lot less ... intense...

With the sexual revolution in the 60s the definition of dating (with the advent of the free love moment) changed becoming synonymous with "going steady" with the pre-going steady phase now called "seeing someone". The gender dynamics changed such that some girls were not content to be pursued but rather started pursuing directly. From there, depending on who you are in the food chain and where you are from, the term "Mercenary" comes to mind on how people treat dating. IT was less and less about finding common ground and more and more about checking off a list. This came to a head in the 80s and has slowly gotten better. With the start of the internet revolution though society has taken a blow in dating reflected in ballooning personal ads and web sites. In many ways it has revert to a pre-1960s environment where dating is strictly a networking excercise outside of the personal ads. This was further complicated by AIDS and other diseases. With media coverage of assaults people are less trusting and find one-on-one socializing more risky then it was in the 60s.

Oddly the term: "Going on a date" remained for both phases. With the avent of the 60s adn on and on you ended up with Hanging Out -> Dating (Now called Seeing Someone) -> Dating (what used to be called Going Steady)