Biopsychology

Proximal & Distal Causes

The Theory of Evolution

Overview of theory and natural selection

Evolution and brain structure

Evolution and human behavior

Evolution and Emotion

Evolution and Mate Selection

Men and Beauty

Women and Status

Evolution and Determinism

When it comes to romantic partners:

men seem to focus on physical beauty

women seem to focus on status

What they did:

Show heterosexual men and women either opposite sex nudes or abstract art.

Then have everyone rate their satisfaction with their current romantic partner.

What they found:

Women were unaffected by the manipulation.

Men were more dissatisfied with their current partner after looking at nudes.

Conclusion:

Men are more affected by physical beauty than are females

 

 

 

What he did:

Set up a "dating game." Manipulated physical attractiveness and status of prospective dates.

What he found:

Men were attuned to physical attractiveness, but not status. Women were attuned to status, but not physical attractiveness.

What Buss did:

Asked men and women to imagine that their romantic partner was engaged in either a physical or emotional relationship with someone else.

Then asked them to indicate how "upset" they would be.

What he found:

Women were more upset imagining emotional relationship.

Men were more upset imagining physical relationship.