Aggressor or protector? Experiences and perceptions of violence predict preferences for masculinity

Abstract

Women's preferences for masculine male partners have been explained in terms of heritable health. The evidence between masculinity and health, however, is controversial and therefore, alternative explanations for masculinity preferences reflecting income inequality and protection from violence have been proposed. This study thus aimed to test the effect of exposure to violence (i.e., experiences of robberies and perceptions of danger) on the individual masculinity preferences of women and men from the capital city of Colombia, Bogota, and surrounding small towns. One hundred and fifty three adult participants (mean age +/-S.D.= 31.3 +/-9.4), all heterosexual, were surveyed in reference to indicators related to health (e.g., drinking water access, frequency of illnesses), access to media (e.g., television and internet access), education (e.g., graduating from high school, attending university) and exposure to violence (e.g., frequency of robberies/attacks, feelings of danger from violence).Participants made two alternative, preference forced-choice for masculinized and feminized versions of both rural Salvadoran and European male faces. We found that men and women exposed to higher levels of violence preferred less masculine male faces, although this effect was only significant for women. Additionally, the effect of violence exposure was more relevant for the Salvadoran stimuli. Violence contributed significantly to explaining masculinity preferences after controlling for participant age, education, access to media, and health-related factors. These preferences may reflect women's strategy to avoid male violence demonstrating that exposure to violence matters in interpersonal attraction.

Women’s Preferences for Men’s Facial Masculinity: Trade-Off Accounts Revisited

“…The other independent influence on masculinity preferences our study did not investigate is perceived threat of violence and/or sexual coercion. Two recent studies found that women's masculinity preferences decrease when primed with images of male-on-female aggression (Li et al 2014) or when exposed to higher levels of violence (Borras-Guevara et al 2017).…”

“…At the same time, it has been found that masculine facial traits increase both perceived dominance and negative attributions of male faces including decreased quality as a parent (e.g., Boothroyd et al 2007;Borras-Guevara et al 2017;Penton-Voak et al 1999;Perrett et al 1998). Indeed, high levels of testosterone have been linked to undesirable social traits such as aggression and decreased paternal investment (e.g., Booth and Dabbs 1993;Mascaro et al 2013;Pollet et al 2011).…”

Domestic violence shapes Colombian women’s partner choices

“…This lies in contrast to the priming of increased masculinity preferences when women were are shown men’s aggression towards men (Li et al 2014 ). Additionally, Colombian women who agreed with the statement “men are dangerous to their children” had low masculinity preferences for male faces (Borras-Guevara et al 2017 ). Following the trade-off theory, the above literature suggests that the violence source coming either from strangers (public violence) or from partners (domestic violence), could have different effects on women’s masculinity preferences, since the types of violence could be associated with different costs and benefits.…”

Can Physical and/or Sexual Abuse Play a Role in the Female Choice of a Partner? A Cross-Sectional, Correlational Pilot Study

“…Previous findings have suggested that experiencing violence may have an impact on women’s choices regarding male facial masculinity [ 51 , 52 , 53 ]. By using a well-validated methodology [ 22 , 44 ], we have explored the association between a history of sexual/physical abuse with the choice of hypothetical male partners for short- and long-term relationships.…”