Dating as an institution is a relatively recent phenomenon which has mainly emerged in the last few centuries. From the standpoint ofanthropology and sociology, dating is linked with other institutions such as marriage and the family which have also been changing rapidly and which have been subject to many forces, including advances in technology and medicine. As humans have evolved fromhunter-gatherers into civilized societies and more recently into modern societies, there have been substantial changes in the relationship between men and women, with perhaps one of a few remaining biological constants being that both adult women and men must havesexual intercourse for human procreation to happen.