Shidduch crisis
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The shidduch crisis is a phenomenon in the Orthodox Jewish community whereby eligible single persons, especially women or Sephardim, have difficulty finding a suitable spouse, or a shidduch.[1][2][3] There is some debate about the severity of the crisis and whether it is a recent development or a long-extant issue.[4]
Several causes have been cited for the shidduch crisis, but it is most commonly attributed to the average age gap between Orthodox Jewish women and men when they marry.[5] Some members of the community dispute this as the root cause.[6][7][8] Several initiatives in various Orthodox Jewish communities exist to close the age gap by offering rewards for shadchanim who make matches between men with women of approximately the same age.[9]
Other possible causes include the increased scrutiny placed on eligible women[10] and the shidduch system in general.[11]
Pandemic and online shidduch
During the COVID-19 pandemic, prolonged lockdown, and popularisation of mobile apps and online video calls, in-person dating and meeting new people became more challenging.[12] In these circumstances, the internet-based shidduch regained its popularity not only among Orthodox Jews, but also among non-religious Jews.[13][14][15][16] This new dynamic has been referred to as "the Shidduch Revolution".[17]
