Last week, a Pew survey found that one in ten Americans qualifies as an “online dater.” Among the other findings:

In general, online daters themselves give the experience high marks. Some 79% of online daters agree that online dating is a good way to meet people, and 70% of them agree that it helps people find a better romantic match because they have access to a wide range of potential partners.

Yet even some online daters view the process itself and the individuals they encounter on these sites somewhat negatively. Around one in ten online daters (13%) agree with the statement that “people who use online dating sites are desperate,” and 29% agree that online dating “keeps people from settling down because they always have options for people to date.”

Lance Whitney points to other perils:

More than half of online daters said they met someone who “seriously misrepresented” themselves in their online profile. And 28 percent said they were contacted by someone in a way that made them feel harassed or uncomfortable. Around 42 percent of women expressed that feeling, compared with just 17 percent of men.

Read a related Dish thread, “A Dating Site For Every Subculture,” here and here.