From Material to Non-Material Needs? The Evolution of Mate Preferences through the Twentieth Century in France

Lippmann, Quentin

doi:10.1017/s0022050721000322

Cited by 11 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…In contrast, the availability of other romantic partners may be more important in the separation decision, since initiation is very predictive of the likelihood of finding a new partner, which in turn is strongly linked to other outcomes. Such an interpretation would also be consistent with recent evidence showing a decline in the importance of economic factors vis-à-vis nonmaterial needs when searching for a romantic partner ( 86 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Separations of romantic relationships are experienced differently by initiators and noninitiators

Brüning

2022

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Significance In economic and sociological theory of divorce, the link between divorce consequences and the decision to divorce is central: A couple divorces if at least one spouse expects to improve their life by initiating divorce. The present study provides empirical evidence in support of this theoretical link: Separation initiators become better off in terms of subjective well-being after a separation, whereas noninitiators become worse off, before they eventually experience a full recovery. Because separations are predominantly initiated by only one partner, this finding suggests that one partner typically benefits from the separation (the initiator), while the other is disadvantaged (the noninitiator). Accordingly, analyses of average divorce trajectories convey only limited information about the causal effects of divorce on individuals’ well-being.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Separations of romantic relationships are experienced differently by initiators and noninitiators

Brüning

2022

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Both human [ 49 ] and animal [ 50 ] studies show females mimic others’ mate choices and preferences. Cultural shifts, like Western societies moving from material to non-material priorities [ 25 ], could hasten and strengthen these changes through imitation, potentially creating distinct between-population differences fueled by social learning [ 51 ].…”

Section: Discussion and Conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mate preferences also seem to change in societies over time, even within the relatively short time span of years or a few decades. A study about women’s matrimonial ads in France found that mate preferences were relatively stable from the 1920s through the 1960s, when the critical importance of material needs started decreasing and the importance of personality criteria started increasing again [ 25 ]. A study by Lu et al [ 26 ] highlighted the influence of economic situation on the mate preferences of females.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing Sexual Strategy Theory in Norway

Mehmetoglu,

Määttänen,

Mittner

2024

Behavioral Sciences

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Choosing a romantic partner for a long-term relationship is one of the most significant decisions one makes during our lifetime. We have inherited an evolved framework from our ancestors that contains traits, as well as preferences for these traits, to solve this task. We use this framework consciously or unconsciously to choose prospective romantic partners. Following this reasoning, sexual strategy theory (SST) has been proposed for predicting which traits women and men prefer in a romantic partner for a long-term relationship. These predictions were empirically tested in the current work based on a sample of 1193 Norwegian adolescents who responded to an online questionnaire. We implemented the study hypotheses, derived from SST, in three statistical models, which were tested using structural equation modeling. In brief, our results revealed that women only valued resources more than men when we controlled for materialistic traits. This finding contrasts with SST’s prediction that women would value resources more than men, independently of other variables. As for the second prediction that men value physical attractiveness more than women, this pattern existed universally and was independent of, for instance, how egalitarian they were. We thus conclude that SST was only partially supported and that variables that may reflect societal circumstances (e.g., wealth, gender, equality) should be considered when examining the mate choice behavior of women and men. The theoretical and practical implications of the study are also discussed.

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“…Mate preferences seem also to change in societies over time, even within the relatively short time span of years or a few decades. A study about women's matrimonial ads in France finds that mate preferences are relatively stable from the 1920s through the 1960s, when the critical importance of material needs started decreasing and the importance of personality criteria started increasing again (Lippmann, 2021). A study by Lu et al (2015) highlights the influence of the economic situation on mate preferences of females.…”

Section: Testing Sexual Strategy Theory In Norway Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing Sexual Strategy Theory in Norway

Mehmetoglu,

Määttänen,

Mittner

2024

Preprint

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Choosing a romantic partner for a long-term relationship is one of the most significant decisions one makes during a lifetime. We have inherited an evolved framework from our ancestors that contains traits as well as preferences for these traits to solve this task. We use this framework consciously or unconsciously to choose prospective romantic partners. Following this reasoning, sexual strategy theory (SST) has been proposed to predict [which traits]{.highlight} women and men prefer in a romantic partner for a long-term relationship. These predictions are empirically tested in the current work based on a sample of 1193 Norwegian adolescents who responded to an online questionnaire. We [implement]{.highlight} the study hypotheses, derived from SST, in three statistical models, which are tested using structural equation modelling. In brief, our results reveal that [women value resources more than men only when we control for materialistic trait]{.highlight}. This finding contrasts SST's prediction that women would value resources more than men, [independent of other variables]{.highlight}. As for the second prediction that men value physical attractiveness more than women, this pattern exists [universally and is independent of, for instance, how egalitarian they are]{.highlight}. We thus conclude that SST is only partially supported and that variables that may reflect societal circumstances (e.g. wealth, gender equality) should be considered when examining the mate choice behaviour of women and men. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are also discussed.

show abstract

From Material to Non-Material Needs? The Evolution of Mate Preferences through the Twentieth Century in France

Cited by 11 publications

References 59 publications

Separations of romantic relationships are experienced differently by initiators and noninitiators

Separations of romantic relationships are experienced differently by initiators and noninitiators

Testing Sexual Strategy Theory in Norway

Testing Sexual Strategy Theory in Norway

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