Chapter 11 Flashcards
What three characteristics are mentioned by the text as making up an attractive face?
What is a problem mentioned in class about the second characteristic?
Complexion, bilateral symmetry, average (ex:average size facial features etc)
If you divide a face down the middle and flip it to the other side, it still does not make it attractive
What was the results of Rhodes et al’s study using European Australian, Japanese, Eurasian, and combos of both EA and J faces in terms of what was perceived as most attractive?
The faces were averaged together and participants in both cultures viewed the average faces to be most attractive regardless of the faces’ culture of origin.
What kinds of bodies are preferred in Western cultures today vs. other cultures?
Averaged bodies are not more attractive in the US–Ideal female bodies in non-western cultures are often heavier than ideal bodies in Western cultures.
What is the propinquity effect and how did the Maryland Police Academy study in the 1970’s evidence it?
Propinquity effect: is another theory to what attracts us to others. This is the closeness in physical space and whom we interact with the most we are more likely to become friends with those people.
– Maryland police academy: the new recruits were lined up in alphabetical order of their last names and this order influenced where they sat in class and where their dorm rooms were located. The study investigated the freindhips that developed and the police were asked to nominate their closest friends at the academy. The graph showed that the alphabetical ordering of the recruits played a large role in determining whom they chose as friends
How is this effect (propinquity effect) derived from the mere exposure effect? What animal species also shows this?
**Why propinquity effect is attractive is because of the mere exposure effect (Is cross culture)
Mere exposure effect: The more we are exposed to a stimulus the more we are attracted to it.
-ex: Chickens. Chickens are more attracted to those chickens they had been exposed to the most.
What is the similarity-attraction effect and what were the results of the study of North Americans and Japanese on the importance of similarity?
Similarity-attraction effect: People tend to be attracted to those who are most like themselves. (Stronger in North Americans than Japanese
Ex: people are more likely to view someone as attractive if both are similar in their attitudes, background, personality, religion etc.
-Study:Japanese and Canadian participants came into lab and met a stranger of same sex and nationality. They then went into separate rooms and completed a personality test. Then they were shown the personality test of the stranger they had met (which was done by the researcher). The responses were made to be highly similar to the participant. The participants were then asked to indicate how much they felt they would like the stranger.
Results: Canadians showed evidence of the similarity-attraction effect and they liked the highly similar person. However, the Japanese was unaffected by the similarity
What are Fiske’s “Four basic elements of sociality” that are common to all forms of relationships around the world?
Common sharing: people give what they can to the relationship without record-keeping
Authority ranking: those with presitige and power care for subordinates
equality matching: something given is expected to be returned
Market pricing: an exchange b/w others happens at the same time
What is the general American attitude towards enemies (as compared to, say, the Ghananian attitude?)
(21% americans say they have enemies while 71% Ghananians say they have enemies.)
- Americans who do feel they had enemies were more likely to view those enemies as coming from outside their group such as those who held ethnic prejudices against their group
- The Ghanaians were more likely to view their enemies as coming from within their in-groups, such as neighbors friends, relatives etc.
How might enemies be explained by independent vs. interdependent views of the self?
Independent view of self: these people perceive the self as fundamentally disconnected from others, and the only reason that people would form connections with others is bc they choose to do so.
…???
How might having enemies relate to low vs. high relational mobility?
Why Americans don’t have many enemies could be because of high vs. low relational mobility
High relational mobility: Their relational ties are flexible enough and opportunities for new relationships are available enough that they feel they can find new relationships and not feel overly bound by their old relationships (ex: college student)
Low relational mobility: They perceive that they have few opportunities to form new relationships and their past relationships and their commitments and obligations they have guid them. Relationships are stable but not all the time positive (ex: in-laws)
What do evolutionary psychologies say about why there is romantic love in most cultures?
the force or drive for romantic love is the long vulnerable period of human childhood. Romantic love is the glue that keeps couples together
Who typically facilitates arranged marriages? Which cultures expect that love is basis for marriages?
- Parents
- Love marriages are more common in cultures with nuclear family units vs. extended kin networks
What are the family structures like in cultures that prefer arranged over love marriages (and visa versa)?
Prefer arranged: usually not random, it relates to the dominant kind of family structure in the culture. Respect wishes for their family members.
Prefer love: Would become more important in cultures as the strength of extended family ties became weaker
**The larger the # of important family relationships that one needs to consider the more likely they will follow the passions of one’s heart
How does individualism relate to preferences for romantic love (and idealization) as a basis for a relationship?
- Individualism relates to the likelihood that one emphasizes romantic love in marriages.
- Idealization: view an individual in the most unrealistically positive term compared with how they view other people
This fosters successful relationships bc it positively distorts the views of one’s partner. Protects one from having to entertain thoughts about the partners unlovable characteristics.
What are the three assumptions Westerners have about love and its relationship to marriage?
- That you can only love someone chosen by yourself
- That love is utimately an individualistic choice– that you only can love someone you can connect with in unique/speacil way
- Marriage that does not have love at its foundation is bound to be miserable
