Without that wall in the middle, it wouldn’t have been much of a game On ABC’s The Dating Game, TV’s first dating show, people selected a date from among three contestants. Key to the game was that they could not see the contestants. Instead, they posed questions (e.g., “If you were in charge of everything, what would you make the national pastime?”) and made their selection based on the contestants’ answers. It may have made for a good show, but it had little to do with real life. Social psychology research suggests that, if they had seen their dating prospects, most people would have simply chosen the most attractive contestant, no matter what answer was given.