Week 2: Lecture 1 - Attraction And Mate Selection

Question 0

Familiarity and similarity

Answer 0

• basic principle of attraction
• ‘mere exposure effect’ Zajonc
• link with safer and adaptiveness
• gaining another’s approval is especially rewarding after rejection
• perceived similarity is what matters

Question 1

Proximity (propinquity)

Answer 1

• Bossard (1930s) - examined 5000 marriage licenses
• 12% of couples had lived in the same building before marriage
• Another 33% lived within 5 blocks of each other
• critical factor: functional distance (Myers, 1999)

Question 2

Arousal and attraction

Answer 2

• Aron and Aron (1989), men found females “torturers” more attractive -> effects of arousal
• The role of general excitement on attraction -> passionate love thrives on obstacles and stress

Question 3

Physical attractiveness

Answer 3

• is most accessible and salient dimension along which people judge others
• beautiful children are treated more favorably
• exception: lower ratings of attractive same-sex job candidates by low self self-esteem interviewers

Question 4

Beauty bias

Answer 4

• Proximal reason: aesthetics (beauty is pleasurable)
• assumption that beautiful people will be good, have more social skills
• basking in reflected glory
• just world effect: good (beautiful) people deserve success

Question 5

Evolved for beauty?

Answer 5

• Universally, signs of youth and health (reproductive viability) are regarded as attractive
• composite (average) faces are judged as more attractive than individual faces; associated with goodness and safety
• babies stare longer

Question 6

Role of facial/bodily symmetry

Answer 6

• Symmetry is associated with good health and low parasite load
• facial asymmetry associated with more psychological and physical problems in Uni students
• female preference for male symmetry when ovulating (also male dominance cues)!

Question 7

Universal & m/f preferences when choosing a mate

Answer 7

• Universal: kindness, loyalty, emotional stability
• male specific: youth, physical attractiveness
• female specific: status, resources

Question 8

Social power hypothesis

Answer 8

• M/f preferences explained by differential access to resources and power
• Def an important factor across time and diff cultures where women have been dependent on men for resource
• reinforced by sex-role socialization
• weaknesses; as women increasingly control their own resources, their preferences should become more like men’s; some evidence (increasing emphasis on male beauty); women still prefer to marry ‘up’

Question 9

Sexual strategies theory - Buss & Schmidt, 1993

Answer 9

• Women need to be highly selective about mating - few reproductive opportunities; need to ensure potential mate has resources and willingness to commit
• Men can be less funny, should be attracted to youth and health
• Evidence; men are less discriminating than women in choice of sexual partner; men value sexual experience in short-term (but not long-term) mate; men are more inclined to casual and extramarital sex (incl. pros.) than women; men have more sexual fantasies than women, and different content

Question 10

Anthropological evidence

Answer 10

• Nearly 84% of past/present human societies have allowed men more than one wife
• men with resources can get as much sex as they like
• computer dating - as men’s income rises, they request younger women

Question 11

How to attract an ideal mate?

Answer 11

• be kind, reliable, cheerful, and dependable
• women; lie about age, look youthful
• men; exaggerate resources and pretend commitment
• women; put down rivals’ appearance and sexual desirability
• men; put down rivals earning ability and commitment potential