Catfish: The Best and Worst Qualities of Online Deceptive Relationships

Event Center A&B

Catfish is an increasingly popular concept that refers to using social media to create a false identity, particularly to pursue deceptive online romances. The present exploratory research used an online survey to ask participants both closed and open ended questions about their experiences in their catfish relationships. For the purpose of this presentation, we analyzed open-ended questions relating to the best and worst qualities of these relationships. Responses were qualitatively analyzed for core themes. Participants reported some of the best qualities to be: having someone to talk to who made them feel good emotionally; partner was caring/romantic; having similar interests; and having an escape from their personal life. Some of the worst qualities reported were: being lied to; never meeting or being physically together; feeling the person was secretive or distant; and being hurt in the end. The presentation concludes with directions for future research.