Topic:
Attraction and Relationships
= new link as of January 1, 2013
Those liked face-to-face are also liked online - [added 7/11/09]
Small world research on instant messaging - Answer: 6.6 degrees of separation [added 10/11/08]
The paradox of polygamy - "Contrary to popular belief, most women benefit from polygynous society, and most men benefit from monogamous society. This is because polygynous society allows some women to share a resourceful man of high status." [added 4/13/08]
Subliminal smells and likeability - story of research finding that in humans consciously undetectable odors alter social preferences [added 3/21/08]
Laughter is the way we connect - an article about research on the role laughter plays in our social world [added 11/17/07]
"Subliminal nude pictures focus attention" - research interpreted to suggest an evolutionary benefit for attending to sexual stimuli [added 12/30/06]
"Beast buddies: Do animals have friends?" - an intriguing question and article from ScienceNews [added 6/9/04]
Propinquity (Physical Proximity)
Long-distance relationships cartoon - Ahh, propinquity. [added 1/29/12]
"18-year-old miraculously finds soulmate in hometown" - an amusing article from the satirical online newspaper The Onion -- ahh, propinquity! [added 12/30/06]
Similarity
Similar music tastes indicate similar values which foretells attraction - [added 7/2/12]
Interpersonal Relationships
How to make "couples friends" - Here's an interesting blog entry about how couples can improve the quality of their life and their relationship if they find other couples with which to be friends. [added 7/2/12]
A little relationship humor - Along with thoughtful and interesting blog entries like the above, Science of Relationships also throws in a good does of relationship humor as well. Just like any good relationship should. And here's a little more humor. [added 7/2/12]Some "cracked" relationship advice - For your amusement, possibly. [added 7/2/12]
"Is watching The Bachelorette bad for your relationship?" - interesting blog post from Science of Relationships [added 7/2/12]
"Who says 'I love you' first in a relationship?" - [added 7/2/12]
Relationship humor - Okay, I found it amusing. [added 7/2/12]Is cohabitation detrimental to marriage? - Dylan Selterman, at Science of Relationships, provides a nice review of the controversy and what the research actually says. [added 7/2/12]
"The power of hello" - Sam Sommers makes a good case for the simple acts of smiling and saying "hello." [added 7/2/12]
Valentine's Day humor - [added 7/2/12]
"Language style predicts relationship longevity" - "Recently, researchers have found that similarity in communication patterns predicts mutual romantic interest and relationship stability 3 months down the road. And we’re not even talking about similar use of big fancy words. Rather, it’s the small words that we would generally consider “fillers”, such as pronouns (I, her, that), articles (a, an, the), conjunctions (and, but, because), and the like that matter. In what researchers call “language style matching’” (or LSM, for short), individuals’ conversations may begin to subtly become synchronous. Sometimes our conversations are high in LSM, which means there is a lot of matching in language use, whereas other conversations are low in LSM, which means we are speaking to one another in quite different styles. In the researchers’ first study, 40 speed-dating couples had their 4-minute interaction recorded, and transcriptions of these interactions were entered into a language analysis computer program. Couples who had higher LSM (again, they matched in their use of pronouns, articles, conjunctions, etc.) were more likely to show mutual romantic interest in one another. This effect was not due to the total number of words being spoken in the conversation (that is, it’s not because two “Chatty Cathys” were paired up and talking each other’s ears off)." [added 1/29/12]
Happiness vs. Time in relationships - another good cartoon/graph [added 1/29/12]
More committed couples use more plural nouns - Warning: Scary picture. [added 1/29/12]
"Twilight" and relationship violence - Another good blog entry from the Science of Relationships site -- what effect might all these teenage vampire movies/shows/stories have on relationship abuse? [added 1/29/12]
Could you date a Democrat/Republican/Libertarian...? [added 1/29/12]
Attachment style and long-lasting relationships - Does a more secure attachment style lead to better success in maintaining long-term relationships? Like relationships themselves, it's complicated. [added 1/29/12]
Top 15 sources of conflict in relationships - From the excellent blog Science of Relationships, created by Ben Le, Gary Lewandowski, and Tim Loving. That's right, Dr. Loving. [added 1/29/12]
Dating equation: half your age + 7 years - "A common rule of thumb, at least on the internet, is that it’s okay to be interested in someone 'half your age plus seven' years. According to this rule, it would not be creepy for a 30 year old to date a 22 year-old, but an 18 year-old would be off-limits. Although this is a fun rule of thumb, what does research say about age preferences for potential mates?" [added 1/29/12]
Disclosing to downers - "Have you ever wanted to share good news with friends but were afraid they would rain on your parade because they’re downers? Researchers recently discovered that people avoid disclosing positive information to low self-esteem friends and romantic partners in order to avoid a negative interaction (e.g., the 'downer' pointing out the downside). Interestingly, we don’t keep the good news to ourselves to protect our close others’ feelings – we primarily focus on our own outcomes!" [added 1/29/12]
"Love is blind. Your friends aren't." - Blog entry describes research on whether you can predict your own relationship's breakup better than your friends can. [added 1/29/12]
"Love is abstract, but sex is concrete" - Here is some interesting research on how generating abstract versus concrete construals can affect how we think about relationships. If you have some difficulty explaining the concept of construals to your students, this example provides a nice way of describing the concept. [added 1/29/12]
"The complicated psychology of revenge" - from the APS Observer [added 1/29/12]
Relationship humor! - Some amusing cartoons found at the excellent blog Science of Relationships; a second one, and a third. [added 1/29/12]
Most romantic U.S. city? - I always like to see interesting ways of measuring things. Most romantic city? The one that rented the highest percentage of romantic comedies through Redbox (a kiosk often located in front of or inside stores from which someone can rent a movie). Follow the link to find out if it is your city... [added 1/29/12]
Humor and attraction - "A recent study indicates that men are more likely than women to use humor when getting to know potential romantic partners, and that women use sense of humor as a criteria for evaluating partners more than men. In addition, when analyzing online personal ads, researchers found that men tended to mention their own sense of humor, while women stated a preference for a funny partner. Finally, a woman’s rating of a man’s sense of humor predicts her romantic interest in him. However, a man's perception of a woman’s sense of humor is unimportant for his desire to get to know her." [added 1/29/12]
A couple good relationship cartoons - first one; second one - I added the new site Science of Relationships to the front page of this site recently. The site has already produced a lot of good blog entries commenting on the topic. They also occasionally include some good cartoons like those above. [added 8/18/11]
"Are the men of the African Aka tribe the best fathers in the world?" - [added 5/30/11]
The study of smiling - very interesting story in the APS Observer on the many facets of smiling research and what it all means [added 12/24/10]
"Which is worse.... - your partner having a heterosexual or a homosexual affair?" Men and women answer differently. [added 12/24/10]
Providing "invisible" support to a loved one - "Recipients whose partners provided more invisible emotional support such as reassurance or expressions of concern, but believed they had received less emotional support, experienced greater declines in anger and anxiety. This was also true for invisible practical support such as advice or direct offers of assistance. Additionally, in the case of invisible practical support, recipients experienced increases in self-efficacy." [added 12/24/10]
Online dating - This blog entry provides a good compilation of recent research on online dating. [added 10/30/10]
"Romantic songs make women more open to dates" - [added 7/21/10]
"Want romance? Show a little gratitude" - Men and, particularly, women were less likely to break up with someone who had showed small acts of gratitude. However, no manipulation occurred, so is the above headline warranted? [added 7/21/10]Sexual infidelity - "Research has documented that most men become much more jealous about sexual infidelity than they do about emotional infidelity. Women are the opposite, and this is true all over the world." The prevailing theory is an evolutionary one: "Men learned over eons to be hyper-vigilant about sex because they can never be absolutely certain they are the father of a child, while women are much more concerned about having a partner who is committed to raising a family." This new research, however, suggests a different explanation. [added 2/7/10]
Mimicry during speed dating - "Women hoping to appeal to speed-dating partners should try subtly mimicking the words and body-language of their dates. That's according to Nicholas Gueguen whose new study shows that women who mimic are rated by men as more sexually attractive." [added 1/18/10]
"Does falling in love make us more creative?" - "A new study demonstrates that thinking about love--but not about sex--causes us to think more 'globally,' making it easier to come up with new ideas." [added 1/18/10]
"The states of marriage and divorce" - This Pew Research Center report is a state-by-state analysis of the current status of marriage and divorce. [added 1/18/10]"Living apart together" - In other words, you are in a relationship, but you don't live with the person. "We use two surveys to describe the demographic and attitudinal correlates of being in "Living Apart Together" (LAT), cohabiting, and marital relationships for heterosexuals, lesbians, and gay men." [added 1/18/10]
Hug is the new handshake - Interesting New York Times article describes an apparent trend in which teenagers regular hug each other as greetings, including between males. [added 7/11/09]
Speed dating - good article describing how the phenomenon of speed dating has provided a wealth of opportunities for research [added 7/11/09]
"Admiring celebrities can help improve self-esteem" - What? Yes, this study found that engaging in these "fake" relationships with celebrities (called parasocial relationships) can benefit those with low self-esteem. [added 8/09/08]
Online dating - interesting blog entry about how online dating has been frustrating, leading to some new approaches [added 6/6/08]
Precursor of healthy adult marriages? - A report from the Rand Corporation looks at adolescent romantic relationships as precursors of healthy adult marriages. [added 12/1/07]
Realistic female dolls for men - "Thousands of men are shelling out $6,500 for hyper-realistic dolls that answer all their needs -- and don't talk back." No mention in the article of women buying men dolls. What would a male doll that answered all of women's needs be like? [added 12/1/07]"The hidden purpose of chat-up lines" - Why do men use pick-up lines? One study investigates that "chat-up lines may be a way for men to select for a particular type of woman." [10/13/07]
The social regulation of emotion - In the latest issue of the APS Observer, there were a number of excellent articles reporting on some interesting talks at the 2007 APS convention that should be good reads for your students. [10/13/07]Prior relationships shape how we interpret new ones - interesting article summarizing some research on this topic [added 8/05/07]
The quest for romance - An interesting essay in the most recent (Feb. 2007) issue of the APS Observer summarizes some recent research. [added 7/7/07]
What does new love look like? - a New York Times article describing some research in which brain scans were conducted of newly-in-love individuals while they were looking at pictures of their beloved [added 7/06/07]
95% of Americans have had pre-marital sex - An extensive review of data from the Guttmacher Institute finds that "by age 20, 77% of respondents had had sex, 75% had had premarital sex, and 12% had married; by age44, 95% of respondents (94% of women, 96% of men, and 97% of those who had ever had sex) had had premarital sex. Even among those who abstained until at least age 20, 81% had had premarital sex by age 44. Among cohorts of women turning 15 between 1964 and 1993, at least 91% had had premarital sex by age 30. Among those turning 15 between 1954 and 1963, 82% had had premarital sex by age 30, and 88% had done so by age 44." [added 12/30/06]
MySpace - Confused about how MySpace and other social networking sites work? Here's one explanation of MySpace from the How Stuff Works web site. [added 7/6/06]
"Romance in America" - The first report is a summary of recent survey data of young singles collected by the Pew Research Center. [added 7/6/06]
Alcohol in relationships - "Alcohol problems in intimate relationships: Identification and intervention" is a guide from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. [added 1/8/06]
The science of love: BBC / PBS - two different sites addressing this question [added 4/05/04]
Adult attachment lab - links, articles and measures of adult attachment
Sexual orientation - research site by authors
"Social Behavior Transformed With One New Gene" - report from ScienceDaily (1999)
Physical Attraction
The U.K.'s most beautiful female face? - [added 7/2/12]
Women in red seen as more sexually interested - "To understand why, Pazda and his colleagues conducted a simple experiment. They showed 25 men a photo of a single woman doctored to look, in different cases, like she was wearing either a red or white T-shirt. The researchers then asked the volunteers to gauge, on a scale from 1 to 9, how keen the model seemed to be on romance. In other words, the men answered the question: 'Is she interested in sex?' Men interpreted the red outfit as a signal that the woman was indeed more open to sexual advances. In fact, the guys tended to grade the woman's disposition to sex about 1 to 1.5 points higher when she was wearing a red rather than a white tee, Pazda and colleagues report online this month in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology." [added 7/2/12]
Attractive? Depends on the context - Sam Sommers reviews some research that suggests whether we find someone attractive is also tied to the context in which we view that person. Hey, Sam, we get it: Situations Matter. Why don't you just write a book or something? [added 7/2/12]
One downside of attractiveness - Same-sex others reviewing your job application may respond more negatively to your attractiveness. Here's another link on the topic. [added 1/29/12]
Similarity and attraction - Sam Sommers provides a good summary of some recent research on how we are attracted (and want to sit by) similar others. [added 1/29/12]Oxytocin boosts trust, and attractiveness in more masculine male faces - Interesting study -- more masculine males can be seen as more dangerous. But a shot of oxytocin up the nose caused both males and females to view the more masculine males as more attractive. [added 1/29/12]
Women rate happy men less attractive than proud men; opposite for women - I'm embarrassed to say that male shame was even more attractive than happy, smiling men to women. [added 8/18/11]
"Beauty is in the mind of the beholder" - a good article in the APS Observer reviewing research on what we find attractive and the benefits of beauty [added 8/18/11]
The medicalization of beauty - Using the new TV show, Bridalplasty, in which brides-to-be compete for cosmetic surgery, this blog entry explores how beauty, along with other phenomena, has become "medicalized." [added 5/30/11]
Attractiveness of leg length - Yes, we've measured eye width, cheekbone height, and all sorts of facial features in determining what we find attractive. Now we learn that "male and female silhouettes with short and excessively long legs were perceived as less attractive across all nations." [added 12/24/10]
Do Disney characters promote "beauty is good" stereotype? - abstract of article that suggests they just might [added 12/24/10]
Are we attracted to our relatives (and ourselves)? - Here is an interesting blog entry describing recent research suggesting that we are attracted to faces that look like ours and our relatives, perhaps suggesting that an incest taboo is "necessary" for that reason. [added 10/30/10]
What determines female facial beauty? - A "new golden ratio" is purportedly found in this study: "Female faces were judged more attractive when the vertical distance between their eyes and the mouth was approximately 36 percent of the face's length, and the horizontal distance between their eyes was approximately 46 percent of the face's width. Interestingly, these proportions correspond with those of an average face." [added 1/18/10]
Men on top, women on the bottom - "If you're hoping to increase your online appeal to the opposite sex, you might want to consider where on the screen you place your photo. A study that's in press at Social Cognition has shown that women rate men's photos as more attractive when they're placed near the top of the screen. By contrast, men rate women's photos as more attractive when they're located near the bottom of the screen." [added 1/18/10]
"Importance of attractiveness depends on where you live" - Urban? It matters. Rural? Not so much. [added 1/18/10]"An unwanted kiss from a moral man" - This study asks would you rather receive an unwanted kiss from a moral man or a consensual kiss from an immoral one. [added 1/18/10]
Face databases - If you are doing research on faces, or want to use the stimuli for other purposes [added 1/18/10]
With or without makeup - Marianne Miserandino passed along this interesting reminder of how carefully the famous and beautiful guard the perception of their beauty. The French version of Elle magazine has released covers of famous stars with and without makeup. [added 1/18/10]
Symmetry versus averageness - A summary of some good research continuing to look at these two factors in our perception of attractiveness -- the question addressed here is, how do you tease out these two factors independently? [added 7/11/09]
"Is it really impossible to ignore an attractive face?" - [added 7/11/09]
"Chicks dig men in flashy cars" - "Previous studies have shown that male attractiveness can be enhanced by manipulation of status through, for example, the medium of costume. The present study experimentally manipulated status by seating the same target model (male and female matched for attractiveness) expressing identical facial expressions and posture in either a 'high status' (Silver Bentley Continental GT) or a 'neutral status' (Red Ford Fiesta ST) motor-car." [added 7/11/09]
Susan Boyle - Lots of good social psych in the Susan Boyle story. If you are not familiar with it read the above. More here. More here. [added 7/11/09]High-pitched voices most attractive - [added 10/11/08]
Attractive girl mimed Olympics ceremony song - You may have heard about this -- the young girl who sang a song as part of the Olympics was not deemed attractive enough to be on display, so a more attractive girl replaced her on stage and mimed the song. [added 10/11/08]
Can the next president have asymmetrical eyebrows? - amusing article from The Onion [added 4/20/08]
Personality and physical attractiveness - description of research in which the manipulation of personality influenced the perception of physical attractiveness [added 3/21/08]
Is there a "beauty premium" on TV game shows? - interesting study [added 7/7/07]
"Ugly girl killed: Nation unshaken by not-so-tragic death" - An amusing article from the satirical online newspaper The Onion [added 12/30/06]
Beauty in the election process - a study "The looks of a winner: Beauty, gender, and electoral success" looks at the role of attractiveness in Finland's politics. [added 12/30/06]
Jamaican Symmetry Project - This is a very interesting project in which researchers "focus on the possibility that dancing ability may correlate with the dancer's degree of bodily symmetry, commonly used in evolutionary studies to measure developmental stability and hence genetic quality." Read what they found, and watch some of the dance video as well. Also read a related research article published in Nature. [added 2/22/06]
What is sexy? - A columnist notes that U.S. Patrick Fitzgerald showed up on a sexiest man list despite lacking "conventional" physically attractive traits. The columnist asks, "Is there a female equivalent to a 'sexy' Patrick Fitzgerald?" In other words, it raises the question of differences between what men and women find attractive. [added 1/14/06]
The Face of Tomorrow - Very interesting site in which a photographer creates a composite photo from many faces he has taken in a certain community. He claims that the composite photo may represent what people in that community will look like in the future -- the face of tomorrow. [added 12/1/04]"Fertile women rate other women as uglier" - interesting article describing research about possible hormonal influences on attractiveness ratings [added 4/05/04]
Resources for the Teaching of Social Psychology is a part of the CROW Project, Course Resources on the Web. CROW was initially sponsored by the Associated Colleges of Illinois and generously supported by UPS. This site was created by Jon Mueller, Professor of Psychology at North Central College, Naperville, IL. Send comments to Jon.