Meeting/dating/relationship-ing was hard enough before 2003. And then Facebook created a whole new set of obstacles, awkward conversations and unclear situations. "Can I admit to knowing things you've done (based on your pics) before we go on dates?" "Should we get to know each other on Facebook before we date?" The difficulty of dating in the era of Facebook is not just in your head, either. Researchers have found that Facebook really is altering, or at least reflecting, new relationship patterns, even how people break up. Or more accurately, don't break up.

"I've been surprised at what a real impact Facebook has on romantic relationships," Galena Rhoades, a clinical psychologist at the University of Denver, told me. "And I do think Facebook is playing bigger role in relationship formation and relationship disillusions."

One of Rhoades doctoral students in clinical psychology, Gretchen Kelmer, noticed that Facebook's role in romantic relationships got a lot of media attention, but that there wasn't any new research or data to show how Facebook directly affected relationship development. In her dissertation, she found that how people displayed their relationships on Facebook — through things like a relationship status or including a partner in their profile picture — were associated with differing levels of commitment. Those that displayed their significant other in their profile picture and were listed as "in a relationship" were more likely to stay together and less likely to have cheated when she checked back with them six months later. They also showed lower levels of "alternative partner monitoring," i.e. scoping out better alternatives.

At each stage of a relationship, even before it really begins and when it needs to end, Facebook has created a whole new slew of obstacles and awkward conversations that previously didn't exist for people in the dreadful world of dating. "There's less structure for people today as relationships develop," says Kelmer. "A lettermans jacket or a class ring — those kinds of social courtship scripts don't exist on Facebook."