Attraction Flashcards
what is the social affiliation model?
homeostatic model (constantly changing boundaries) where we seek out interactions in a manner consistent with an INTERNAL OPTIMAL RANGE
why do we isolate ourselves? (theories & models) (3)
privacy regulation theory (Altman, 1975)
social affiliation model (O’connor & Rosenblood, 1996)
sociotropic vs soliotropic orientation (Leary, Herbst, McCrary, 2003)
why do we isolate ourselves? (2) + (2)
psychological wellbeing:
isolation allows for:
–> creativity & freedom of expression
–> relaxation & spirituality
Privacy regulation theory (Altman, 1975)= (4)
- Desire for privacy is not consistent: it is dynamic (changing) & dialectic (interactive)
- it varies based on individual and cultural differences
- when actual privacy EXCEEDS desired we feel lonely
- when actual privacy is LESS THAN desired we feel annoyed or crowded
sociotropic vs solitropic orientation (Leary, Herbst, McCrary, 2003)
sociotropic= orientation towards being with people
solitropic= orientation towards being alone
- two orientations arent counter-opposed more of a quadruple scale
what are the 4 motivations to be with people?>
- social attention= seeking praise or approval
- social comparison= seeking information (e.g. assess if opinions are valid & general info seeking)
- stimulation= seeking entertainmnet (anything to avoid boredom)
- emotional support
why bother attracting people? (2)
- due to fundamental need to belong
- ‘need to affiliate’= urge to form connections
Dangers of social isolations: evidence> (3)
- Infants need for social care (spitz, 1945)> resulted in hospitalism & stunted development
- Inmate spent 29 years in solitary confinement> resulted in trouble recognising faces & sense of direction
- poker player bet $100,000 he could last 30 days in isolation> (lasted 20 days, experienced changes in his sleep cycle & hallucinations)
infants need for social care (spitz, 1945) (3)
- Post wwII abandoned babies taken in by hospital- only biological needs tended to> no nurture or social contact
impact: - hospitalism= state of apathy & depression among infants deprived of social contact
- higher mortality rates & less socially & mentally advanced
Dangers of social isolation: effect on the brain> (2)
- reduced size of hippocampus (memory & spatial awareness)
- increased activity of the amygdala (memory, decision-making, & emotions)
dangers of social isolation: effects on the body (2)
- diverse social networks related to a lower susceptibility to common colds
- increase risk of heart attack or stroke
dangers of social isolation: effect of rejection
- evidence from fMRI studies show brain response to rejection from people as the same as physical pain (eisenberger, lieberman, & williams, 2003)
(- aspirin can help sooth emotional pain (deweall & baumeister, 2006))
Dangers of social isolation: which part of the brain become overactivated if you spend too much time alone?
amygdala
someone with a solitropic orientation prefers?
spending time by themselves
Dangers of social isolation: what becomes underactivated when we spend too much time alone?
hippocampus
(memory & spatial awareness)
What is social identity?
Idea a person’s sense of self is based on group membership
what is the ‘social cure’ (jettern et al, 2009) [3]
- Depressed individuals who joined groups reduced risk of depression relapse by 24%
- If joined three groups, risk reduced by 63%
- membership of social groups is both protective against developing depression & curative of existing depression
what is a social surrogate? (boucher & cummings, 2017)
someone that can help another enter & engage in potentially anxiety-provoking social situations
what is a parasocial relationship?
something that can “fulfil” the need for social interaction with no reciprocity (it is one sided)
What are the benefits of parasocial relationships?
social associations activate relationship-related concepts & this can reduce isolation threat
Physical attraction> (hill, 1939): what are the main deviation in trends between m & f preferences?
- f: prioritise ambitiousness & industriousness over good health
- m: prioritise good health over ambition & industriousness
physical attraction> (hill, 1939): What are the commonalities across top 5 in m & f? (4)
- emotional stability
- dependable character
- pleasing disposition
- mutual attraction
evolutionary psych: what is the minimal parental investment?
how much effort required for m & f to pass on their genes (large difference of MPI between sexes)
what do the results from the study of bower birds scattering patterns>paintings tell us?
- results found people liked painting of bowerbird that was most reproductively successful
- study shows universality in what we do to attract mates & what we find attractive
Factors that affect attractiveness> (4)
- Faces
- Skin colouration
- Female figure
- Sexual dimorphism
What affects Attractiveness: face > (4)
- account for a disproportional amount of info & attractiveness compared to the rest of the body:
- amount of fat in face
- averageness (more=more attractive)
- sexual dimorphism
what is sexual dimorphism?
phenotypic differences between m & f of a species
What affects attractiveness: face: preference»
- w: more feminine faces (oestrogen)> high levels of o associated with better health
- m: low testosterone face> associated with negative partner attributes: aggression/ violence
what affects attractiveness?: skin colouration (2 1/2)
- cultural variation on tone (light/dark)
>potential confound with socioeconomic status
(elizabethan era & pale=rich=beauty standard) - preference for evidence of carotenoid colouration (redness)
what affects attractiveness?: female figure (3)
- hip-to-waist ratio
- average is 0.80; (in men= 0.90)
- body fat distribution is a function of hormones (e.g. cortisol> changes in response to stress> causes w ratio to become more male-like in stressful environments)
what affects attractiveness: female figure: preference»
- in western societies, ideal= 0.70
- variation in other societies potentially due to ecological factors
what affects attractiveness: sexual dimorphism in face»
- hormones throughout body change the structure of your skull at a high level (shift body for survival & reproduction)
what are results of sexual dimorphism in MALE faces:
Due to testosterone:
- develop forehead ridge, mastoid bones become pointier & start having square jaws
what are results of sexual dimorphism in FEMALE faces:
smoother foreheads, more triangular jaws & dont have pointy bones
order of preference for attractiveness >
hete-men> homo-men> hete women>homo women
order of preference for resource traits>
hete- women> homo/hete men> homo-women
Trans individuals & attraction>
- trans women: place more emphasis on attractivness & resource access; valued same characteristics as both cis m & f
what are our attraction & mating behaviours caused by:
combination of biological mechanisms, social influences & situational factors
meta-analysis (langlois et al, 2000): beauty is in the eye of the beholder>
-suggests lack of agreement on what is attractive
-not true, fairly universal idea of what is physically attractive
meta-analysis (langlois et al, 2000): never judge a book by its cover
- suggests we dont judge people on how they look, but on character
- proven we judge & treat people based on how they look, with a reasonable amount of accuracy
meta-analysis (langlois et al, 2000): Beauty is only skin deep>
- suggests no relation between physical appearance & personality
- not true: “halo-effect”- ‘what is beautiful is good’ (dion, 1971)
what is the halo effect?
cognitive bias wherein one positive attribute influences our perception of other attributes (applies to companies, products also)
halo effect- attractiveness stereotype:
- assumes attractive people possess other socially desirable personality traits
- more likely to get a job & get paid more
- less likely to end up in jail
- better grades
- more confident
halo-effect feedback loop
- are attractive people ‘genetically better’ [unlikely]
- or if somebody is physically attractive we will treat them with kindness, with competence & thus establish a level of confidence in them to behave a certain way & create a feedback loop? [likely]
