Evolutionary Explanations of Celebrity Flashcards
What are 2 evolutionary explanations for the attraction of celebrity?
- Neophilia
2. Gossip
How does neophilia mean and how attempt to explain the attraction of celebrity?
Neophilia = an evolved love of novelty.
We are attracted to those who have unique abilities and creativity as it suggests an ability to provide, which would result in lots of resources provided to our offspring.
What did Miller suggest about neophilia?
Sexual selection underlies the evolution of creative intelligence - celebrities often display creative talents that represent a world of fantasy and so become attractive.
Females are inclines to select males who are the most entertaining and interesting.
What did Miller suggest about a partner being boring vs an entertaining partner?
Being boring towards a partner makes attraction a failure. Being creative and entertaining makes you more able to provide, explaining celebrity attractiveness.
What did Townsend, Kline and Wasserman find relating to status and attractiveness, and what does this explain?
Both sexes agreed that males’ sexual attractiveness depended on their status more than females’ sexual attractiveness. Explains why women tend to be more attracted to celebrities than men.
How did McAndrew explain how gossip explains celebrity attraction?
Gossip is an aspect of social behaviour that is adaptive, and celebrities are a rich source of gossip. Our ancestors lived in smaller, more isolated groups, where gossiping was important in order to keep track of alliances, relationships and potential threats.
What are 2 things that gossip enables?
- Gives those with no status or power an opportunity to be involved and socially successful.
- Allows people to talk about perspective partners.
Why may celebrities be a rich source of gossip?
They are perceived to have high status due to wealth, success, etc. Also less risky to gossip about a celebrity than someone you know.
What did Dunbar suggest about gossip?
It has evolved in humans for the same reason as grooming in primates - it’s a route to social communication and helps bonding.
What is 1 criticism of gossip as an explanation of celebrity attraction?
Beta bias - research shows that women spend more time gossiping about celebrities than men, so it is unfair to generalise this theory to men.
What are 2 criticisms of evolutionary explanations of celebrity attraction?
- Reductionist - ignore social causes.
2. Heterosexual bias - can;t explain homosexual celebrity attraction.
