Is Ageism Alive in Date Selection among Men? Age Requests among Gay and Straight Men in Internet Personal Ads

We examine 2,400 personal ads from male advertisers collected from the Internet, focusing on age preference by race and sexual orientation. We look at whether advertisers display any age preference in personal ads and whether the preference varies by race and sexual orientation. We find that gay men are more likely than straight men to state an age preference. Also, the preference for younger partners intensifies among older advertisers regardless of race and sexual orientation. Youth is still a treasured commodity in date selection for men. However, some men, especially gay men, prefer more mature partners. At least 20 percent of gay Asian men in all three age groups prefer older partners. Further research is recommended to explore this exception among gay Asian men.