lesson 3 - physical attractiveness

Question 1

what is another factor of attraction in romantic relationships

Answer 1

physical attractiveness

Question 2

how important is physical attractiveness in terms of attraction

Answer 2

meals place a great deal of importance on physical attractiveness when choosing a female partner in the short and long term. research has shown physical attractiveness is also very important for females when choosing a male partner esp in the short term but is less important in the long term

Question 3

what is the halo effect

Answer 3

when the general impression of a person in incorrectly formed from on characteristic alone eg physical attractiveness. physically attractive ppl are often seen as more sociable, optimistic, successful and trustworthy. people tend to behave positively towards ppl who are physically attractive and this creates a self-fulfilling prophecy where the physically attractive person behaves even more positively because of the positive attention they receive

Question 4

strength of the Halo effect

Answer 4

• palmer and Peterson found that physically attractive ppl were rated as more politically knowledgeable than unattractive ppl. the halo effect was so powerful that it persisted even when ops found out that physically attractive person had no expertise in politics

Question 5

limitation of the halo effect

Answer 5

• Towhey asked male and female ops to rate how much they liked an individual based on a photo/ ops also completed a MACHO scale which measured sexist attitudes and behaviour. It was found that apps who scored highly on the MACHO scale were more influenced by physical attractiveness. those who scores low on the questionnaire didn’t value physical attractiveness. therefore the influence of physical attractiveness is moderated by other factors eg personality

Question 6

what is the matching hypothesis

Answer 6

when initiating romantic relationships individuals seek partners that have the same social desirability as themselves . physical attractiveness becomes the major determining factor as it is an accessible way for each person to rate the other person as a potential partner before forming a relationship. most ppl would prefer to form a relationship w someone who is physically attractive but in order to not be ejected many ppl will approach other who are of similar level pf attractiveness to themselves

Question 7

strength of the matching hypothesis

Answer 7

• fanged found supportive evidence for the matching hypothesis by carrying out a meta-analysis pf 17 studies using real life couples. he established a strong positive correlation between the partners ratings of physical attractiveness just as predicted by the matching hypothesis

Question 8

limitation of the matching hypothesis

Answer 8

• walster invited 752 first year students at the uni of Minnesota to attend a dance party. they were randomly matched to a partner however, when students were picking up their tickets they were secretly judged by a panel in terms of physical attractiveness. at the dance party and 4 to 6 months later students were asked whether they found their partner attractive and whether they would like to go on a second date w them.. contrary to the matching hypothesis students expressed higher appreciation of their partner if the partner was attractive regardless of their own level of attractiveness
• sometimes a very physically attractive person forms a relationship w an unattractive person. often a rebalance of trait will occur whereby the less physically unattractive person has some other traits to make up for their lack of physical attractiveness eg being rich, having a high status or great personality (complex matching)

Question 9

what is complex matching

Answer 9

where a very attractive person forms a relationship w an unattractive person