attraction

Question 1

what did Walster et al’s experiment on the computer dating paradigm show?

Answer 1

huge halo effect to attractiveness- predicted if there was a second date

wasn’t until 5th date that personality became more important

Question 2

what are the positive life outcomes of being attractive?

Answer 2

– Higher income (Hamermesh & Biddle, 1994) – Better mental health – More social influence (Chaiken, 1979)

Question 3

what did Berscheid and Walster show with their computer dating scenario?

Answer 3

similarity of attractivness is more important than attractiveness

especially for women

Question 4

what does the matching hypothesis predict

Answer 4

that if the couple are equally attractive the relationship will be long

Question 5

what are the arguments to say that beauty is objective cross culturally

Answer 5

1) High level of agreement across cultures
(Langlois et al, 2000)
2) Certain features of faces are reliably
associated with attractiveness
(Cunningham, 1986)
3) Babies prefer attractive faces

Question 6

what are the arguments to say that beauty is subjective cross culturally?

Answer 6

1) Different cultures “improve” beauty in
different ways (Newman, 2000).
2) Different body types are judged to be
more attractive in different parts of the
world (Anderson et. al 1992)
3) Body type standards vary over time
(Silverstein et al, 1986).

Question 7

what did Boothroyd show?

Answer 7

in Nicaragua those who got tv 5 years ago and those who lived in the city found people with a lower bmi more attractive than those who lived in a village with no tv

Question 8

what is the evolutionary approach to attraction?

Answer 8

sexual selection- attractive traits are passed on

• attractive trait benefit the chooser
• averageness is associated with health

Question 9

what does morphology suggest?

Answer 9

that humans are less polygynous than gorillas but there is more sperm competition than gorillas (more polyandry)

there is less sperm competition than in more promiscuous chimps and bonobos.

Question 10

what are humans in terms of mating patterns

Answer 10

• mildly polygnous (several females one male)

- females are the limiting factor

Question 11

in terms of looking for acceptable age criterion for sex, dating and marriage what did buss and schmitt find?

Answer 11

looked for younger people for sex, bit older to date and again bit older to marr.

women in each had a older minimum acceptable.

Question 12

what are male priorities within short term relationships?

Answer 12

proceptivity

fertility

Question 13

what are male priorities within long term relationships?

Answer 13

youth
fertility
faitfulness

Question 14

what are female priorities in short term relationships?

Answer 14

good genes

Question 15

what are female priorities in long term relationships?

Answer 15

resources
status
generosity

Question 16

what is Buss and Schmitt’s sexual strategies theory

Answer 16

men and women look for different things in short term and long term relationships

Question 17

what are fertility cues that can make women more attractive to men?

Answer 17

wast-hip ratio

femininity

Question 18

what is Zahavi’s handicap principle?

Answer 18

The central idea is that sexually selected traits function like conspicuous consumption, signalling the ability to afford to squander a resource. Receivers know that the signal indicates quality because inferior quality signallers cannot afford to produce such wastefully extravagant signals.

is honest advertising
e.g. peacocks tail feathers

Question 19

Describe the parasite infestation theory Hamilton and Zuk

Answer 19

1) females choose mates on the basis of secondary sex characters; 2) the full expression of these characters is limited by parasite infection; 3) females choose males with exaggerated secondary traits in order to obtain resistance genes for their offspring; and 4) heritable variation in parasite resistance is maintained due to coevolution between parasites and hosts (Hamilton and Zuk 1982). Two major predictions arise from this hypothesis. According to the intraspecific prediction, females should preferentially mate with the brightest or most ornate males available, and these males should carry lower parasite loads than less showy males.

Question 20

explain Immunocompetence (Folstad & Karter

Answer 20

Immunocompetence Handicap Hypothesis (IHH) states that testosterone-dependent ornaments honestly signal such quality because of physiological costs associated with testosterone, such as impaired immune function.

Question 21

why is symmetry in faces attractive?

Answer 21

shows a cue to health- symmetry predicts apparent and skin patch health

benefits–> offspring inherit immunity to current pathogens and avoid infection

Question 22

explain market value and mate preference

Answer 22

individuals with greater market value will be better placed to translate their preference into choice

Question 23

what animals other than humans has market value been shown in

Answer 23

sticklebacks

zebra finches

Question 24

what did Pawlowski and Dunbar find regarding market value

Answer 24

in lonely hearts ads older women make fewer requests upon a man

Question 25

what is FA

Answer 25

Fluctuating assymetry- indicates bad immunity

Question 26

what did Gangestad & Thornhill (1999) do/ show

Answer 26

used FA and Relationship-Specific Investment Inventory

Question 27

what did little et al. show about market value

Answer 27

more attractive women prefer symmetric men

Question 28

what is ornamentation

Answer 28

serves to emphasise secondary sexual characteristics (e.g. muscle mass, facial structure, breasts, waist-hip ratio)

Question 29

what did singh and bronstad show about scarification

Answer 29

more prevalent in societies where there is a higher pathogen prevalence.

Question 30

what did Wohlraub find about tattoos

Answer 30

they show dominance and attractiveness

Question 31

what is sexual imprinting?

Answer 31

Parents influence mate preferences in

many birds and mammals

Question 32

what is Assortative mating?

Answer 32

helps keep good gene-complexes together?

increases parents’ relatedness to their own children?

Question 33

what did Perrett show about sexual imprinting?

Answer 33

if parents were younger than 30 women found younger faces + attractive

if parents were older than 30 then older faces more attractive

both showed peak at about 30 and followed same general trend

Question 34

What does a more symmetrical face lead to? Thornhill

Answer 34

more symmetrical= more potential partners (men and women)

Question 35

What did Thornhill find about men with symmetrical faces when in relationships

Answer 35

symmetrical men= less honest, less time with partners and oversexualise other women

actually same levels of general commitment to one partner- more likely to have brief opportunistic sex.