Heterosexual romantic preferences: The importance of humor and physical attractiveness for different types of relationships

Lundy, Duane E.; Tan, Josephine C. H.; Cunningham, Michael R.

doi:10.1111/j.1475-6811.1998.tb00174.x

Cited by 84 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Put more simply, women are attracted to humorous men but men are not especially attracted to funny women Lundy, Tan, and Cunningham, 1998). This does not mean that humor is not important for women but it does Evolutionary Psychology -ISSN 1474-7049 -Volume 11(1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laughing at the Looking Glass: Does Humor Style Serve as an Interpersonal Signal?

2013

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Abstract:Objective: The provision of information appears to be an important feature of humor. The present studies examined whether humor serves as an interpersonal signal such that an individual"s style of humor is associated with how the individual is perceived by others. Method: We examined this issue across two studies. In Study 1, undergraduate participants (257 targets) were rated more positively by their friends and family members (1194 perceivers) when they possessed more benign humor styles. In Study 2, 1190 community participants rated the romantic desirability of targets ostensibly possessing different humor styles. Results: Across both studies, our results were consistent with the possibility that humor serves as a signal. More specifically, individuals with benign humor styles (affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles) were evaluated more positively than those targets with injurious humor styles (aggressive and self-defeating humor styles). Conclusion: These findings are discussed in terms of the role that humor may play in interpersonal perception and relationships.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laughing at the Looking Glass: Does Humor Style Serve as an Interpersonal Signal?

2013

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“…First, in the studies where women rated men who used humor to be more desirable for relationships Lundy et al, 1998), women also rated the humorists as less intelligent than nonhumorous men. This finding indicates that humor can be desirable apart from whether it indicates intelligence to an audience.…”

Section: Sexual Selection: Humor Is Attractivementioning

confidence: 99%

An Evolutionary Perspective on Humor: Sexual Selection or Interest Indication?

Griskevicius

Durante

et al. 2009

Pers Soc Psychol Bull

107

134

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Are people who are funny more attractive? Or does being attractive lead people to be seen as funnier? The answer may depend on the underlying evolutionary function of humor. While humor has been proposed to signal “good genes,” the authors propose that humor also functions to indicate interest in social relationships—in initiating new relationships and in monitoring existing ones. Consistent with this interest indicator model, across three studies both sexes were more likely to initiate humor and to respond more positively and consider the other person to be funny when initially attracted to that person. The findings support that humor dynamics— and not just humor displays—influence romantic chemistry for both men and women, suggesting that humor can ultimately function as a strategy to initiate and monitor social relationships.

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“…However, given the complex trade-offs involved in partnering decisions (Li, Bailey, Kenrick, & Linsenmeier, 2002) and the interactive effects of certain trait combinations on a partner's desirability (e.g., Jensen -Campbell, Graziano, & West, 1995;Lundy, Tan, & Cunningham, 1998), such individual effects may be exceedingly difficult to detect.…”

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confidence: 99%

Chasing Prince Charming: Partnering consequences of holding unrealistic standards for a spouse

Bredow

2015

Personal Relationships

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Although social scientists have generally assumed that people's standards for a spouse shape their marital behavior, systematic investigations of the role of mate standards in partnering have been rare. Using survey data collected from 471 unmarried individuals and their peer informants, this study used a novel, residual‐based approach to quantify the attainability (rather than the absolute stringency) of people's standards for a spouse. Regression analyses using this index of unrealistic criteria revealed that holding less realistic standards for a marriage partner was associated with several indicators of a propensity to delay or forgo marriage, including greater difficulty establishing high‐quality romantic relationships, lower expectations to marry one's current partner, and lower levels of psychological and behavioral investment in marrying.

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Heterosexual romantic preferences: The importance of humor and physical attractiveness for different types of relationships

Cited by 84 publications

References 61 publications

Laughing at the Looking Glass: Does Humor Style Serve as an Interpersonal Signal?

Laughing at the Looking Glass: Does Humor Style Serve as an Interpersonal Signal?

An Evolutionary Perspective on Humor: Sexual Selection or Interest Indication?

Chasing Prince Charming: Partnering consequences of holding unrealistic standards for a spouse

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