That is the conclusion Pacific Standard draws from a new study:
Nora Caplan-Bricker at The New Republic doesn't see a problem:People who use Internet dating sites are choosing who to date based on criteria that are highly correlated with political preferences, according to a study published in the most recent edition of the academic journal Political Behavior. As a result, the study suggests, there may be long-term consequences for political polarization: not only are such couples more likely to move to the ideological extremes because they lack access to contradictory opinions, they also are likely to produce children who hold ideologically extreme positions. The end result is a more polarized America where more and more people cannot understand how others could possibly think differently from themselves. ...
Unfortunately, this has some serious consequences for democracy. When people do not understand the rationale behind contradictory beliefs—something we learn from talking with friends and loved ones who hold opposing views—we tend to be less tolerant toward the opposition. Some research even suggests that when we lack this information, we are more likely to think the government is illegitimate when we are on the losing side of an election.
The biggest issue with the Standard's article is that it implies it is shallow, even irresponsible, to use party affiliation as a filter for possible romantic partners. ... As long as party registration is a nearly perfect proxy for fundamental social views—and as long as OKCupid doesn't have individual boxes for "universal health care," "voting rights," "gun control," and the like—some political discrimination strikes me, not as the cause of the problem, but as a very reasonable response to it.(h/t The Dish)
