Speed-dating Study Research Articles

Speed-dating and simulation data explain the discrepancy between stated and revealed mate preferences

There is little evidence in speed-dating studies that stated preferences – what people say they prefer in a partner – are associated with revealed preferences – what people actually find attractive in a partner. In Study 1, a high-powered speed-dating study ( n = 1145) revealed that four out of nine traits provided evidence of a correspondence between stated and revealed preferences. In Study 2, simulations based on the constraints of Study 1’s speed-dating design showed that when attractiveness depends on multiple independent traits, the stated preference for an individual trait can only be, on average, minimally related to the revealed preference for that trait. In Study 3, we investigated methods that simultaneously combine multiple traits when testing the association between stated and revealed preferences (e.g. Euclidean distance, pattern metric). All four omnibus methods indicated an apparent association between stated and revealed preferences in our speed-dating data. However, additional analyses and permutation tests suggest that these significant associations reflect statistical artefacts rather than true correspondences. We conclude that detecting any association between stated and revealed preferences will be difficult under realistic assumptions about the number of traits involved in partner evaluation. In this light, we discuss previous findings and provide suggestions for future studies in this vein.

Do Objective and Peer-perceived Qualities Moderate the Effect of Narcissism on Social Outcomes?

Narcissistic individuals have a strong desire for attracting short-term mates, being influential in groups, and attaining prestige and material wealth. Past research suggests that narcissistic individuals are also quite successful in attaining these outcomes and these effects are due to narcissists’ grandiose self-image and admiration-seeking tendency (i.e., admiration component of narcissism). In the current research, we investigated whether the effects of narcissistic admiration are moderated by specific qualities that are helpful for attaining the respective outcomes. Specifically, we tested whether physical attractiveness moderates the effect of narcissistic admiration on short-term mate appeal, whether intelligence and socio-emotional abilities moderate the effect on social influence, and whether intelligence moderates the effects on occupational prestige and material wealth. Analyzing data from a speed-dating study (Study 1, N = 397), a round-robin laboratory study (Study 2, N = 256), and a panel study representative of the German population (Study 3, N = 1,477), we found that narcissistic admiration and the respective qualities predicted the outcomes, but in most cases, their interactions were non-significant. There was one exception: Narcissistic admiration interacted with verbal intelligence in the sense that the effects of narcissistic admiration on occupational prestige and material wealth were more positive, the higher verbal intelligence was.

Sharing and Receiving Eye-Contact Predicts Mate Choice After a 5-Minute Conversation: Evidence from a Speed-Dating Study

In popular narratives, the first date with a potential mate often centers on their gaze as embodiment of interest and attraction. However, evidence is still lacking on the role of eye-contact as a potent signal in human social interaction in the context of dating. In addition, behavioral mechanisms of mate selection are not well understood. In the present study, we therefore examined mutual eye-contact and its influence on mate choice by applying dual mobile eye-tracking during naturalistic speed-dates. A total of 30 male and 30 female subjects attended four speed-dates each (N = 240). Subjects were more likely to choose those dating partners with whom they shared more eye-contact with. In addition, perceived attractiveness played an important role for mate choice. Interestingly, receiving but not giving eye-contact also predicted individual mate choice. Eye-contact thus acts as an important signal of romantic attraction when encountering a dating partner.

Objectively measured facial traits predict in-person evaluations of facial attractiveness and prosociality in speed-dating partners

Many studies have investigated whether facial averageness, masculinity, and similarity are associated with facial attractiveness. These studies have relied on ratings of images of real or digitally morphed faces. It is important to establish whether past findings translate to real-life, face-to-face evaluations of potential partners; lack of effects in this context would cast doubt on the evolutionary relevance of previous findings. Further, previous studies have not considered that, by definition, faces that are more similar to the average face (i.e. higher in averageness) tend to be more similar to raters' faces. Therefore, these image-rating studies, which separately found that averageness and (in some cases) similarity are attractive, are confounded. To address these issues, we conducted a laboratory-based speed-dating study of 682 participants with objectively measured facial traits, where opposite-sex pairs rated each other on facial attractiveness and prosociality. We found that facial attractiveness was predicted separately by averageness and by similarity (to the rater), but with both variables in the same model, neither uniquely predicted attractiveness. Similarity, but not averageness, predicted prosociality ratings. Facial masculinity was positively and negatively associated with facial attractiveness ratings of men and women, respectively. These results confirm, in real-life interactions, some key findings from image-rating studies but raise questions about others, notably the attractiveness of facial averageness.

The Role of Accurate Self-Assessments in Optimizing Mate Choice.

Individuals are thought to seek the best possible romantic partner in exchange for their own desirability. We investigated whether individuals' self-evaluations were related to their partner choices and whether the accuracy of these self-evaluations was associated with mating outcomes. Participants (N = 1,354) took part in a speed-dating study where they rated themselves and others on mate value and indicated their willingness to date each potential partner. Individuals were somewhat accurate in their self-evaluations, and these self-evaluations were associated with individuals' revealed minimum and maximum standards for a potential partner, but not the number of partners they were interested in. Participants who overestimated their mate value were accepted by an equivalent number of partners compared with under-estimators, but the over-estimators were choosier and thus ended up with fewer (but similarly attractive) reciprocal matches. Results support social exchange theory and the matching hypothesis, and contrast findings that self-enhancement facilitates positive social outcomes.

Initial impressions of compatibility and mate value predict later dating and romantic interest

Romantic first impressions seem to linger, but why? Few studies have investigated how romantic desire during initial interactions predicts later relational outcomes (e.g., later romantic interest, contact attempts) using a design that can tease apart different possible mechanisms (e.g., mate value, selectivity, compatibility). Across three speed-dating studies (n = 559) with longitudinal follow-ups (including college and community samples, and a sample of men who date men), we investigated whether different components of initial romantic impressions predicted later romantic outcomes and relationship initiation. Using the social relations model, we partitioned initial desire at speed dating (determined from 6,600+ total dates) into partner effects (a date's consensual desirability, e.g., mate value), actor effects (a participant's general desirousness, e.g., selectivity), and relationship effects (a participant's unique liking for a date over and beyond partner and actor effects, e.g., compatibility) to predict later evaluations (romantic interest, physical attraction, and desire to know better) and behaviors (direct messaging and going on dates). Meta-analyses across the three studies showed that, across 6,100+ follow-up reports, partner and relationship effects were especially strong predictors of relationship initiation variables. Consistent with evolutionary models of human pair bonding, these findings suggest that both consensually desirable traits and unique impressions of compatibility have lingering effects on relationship development, even from the moment that two potential partners meet.

The role of self-control and sociosexual orientation in partner selection: A speed-dating study

Self-control is a crucial factor in maintaining an established romantic relationship, but its role in relationship formation is understudied. The current study tested whether trait self-control is related to a more selective approach toward romantic partners. Over 4 years, we organized 11 speed-date events at which a total of 342 single, heterosexual participants met potential partners. Our results indicated that there was no main effect of self-control on selectivity. However, there was an interaction between self-control and sociosexual orientation (SOI) in predicting selectivity. Specifically, self-control was positively related to selectivity for people with a restricted SOI (i.e., interested in a long-term, stable relationship). For people with an unrestricted SOI (i.e., interested in a short-term, sexual relationship), however, self-control was related to lower selectivity. Our findings point to the flexibility of self-control in facilitating goal progress, stimulating people to refrain from—or act on—their impulses, depending on their own personal mating goals.

How do people form romantic relationships?: Implications from speed-dating studies

How do people form romantic relationships?: Implications from speed-dating studies

Question asking as a dyadic behavior.

Huang, Yeomans, Brooks, Minson, and Gino (2017) studied the role of question asking in conversations. They claimed to have identified "a robust and consistent relationship between question-asking and liking" (p. 1), where liking is affected largely by follow-up questions, rather than by switch questions. They concluded that their "data support a trait-level model of question-asking behavior" (p. 12), and that "question-asking is a critical component of active listening" (p. 14). Our theoretical, methodological, and empirical reanalyses of their speed-dating study (Study 3), where liking was operationalized as being offered a second date, lead to different conclusions. Their speed-dating data conforms to an asymmetric block design, and should have been analyzed using the social relations model, to unconfound the effects of the actor, partner, dyad, and gender. Social relations modeling showed that about a third of the variance of question asking can be attributed to a trait, but that another third of the variance can be attributed to the specific dyad, and some smaller portion of the variance can be attributed to the partner's tendency to elicit question asking. Bivariate social relations modeling showed that latent scores of follow-up questions and switch questions are largely isomorphic. Finally, asking an opposite sex partner questions tends to be inversely related to being offered a second date, at least for men. Based on theory, our reanalysis, and other empirical findings, we conclude that offering a second-date is not equivalent to liking, and that question asking is different from listening. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Hormones in speed-dating: The role of testosterone and cortisol in attraction

There is evidence that testosterone and cortisol levels are related to the attraction of a romantic partner; testosterone levels relate to a wide range of sexual behaviors and cortisol is a crucial component in the response to stress. To investigate this, we conducted a speed-dating study among heterosexual singles. We measured salivary testosterone and cortisol changes in men and women (n = 79) when they participated in a romantic condition (meeting opposite-sex others, i.e., potential romantic partners), as well as a control condition (meeting same-sex others, i.e., potential friends). Over the course of the romantic speed-dating event, results showed that women's but not men's testosterone levels increased and cortisol levels decreased for both men and women. These findings indicate that men's testosterone and cortisol levels were elevated in anticipation of the event, whereas for women, this appears to only be the case for cortisol. Concerning the relationship between attraction and hormonal change, four important findings can be distinguished. First, men were more popular when they arrived at the romantic speed-dating event with elevated cortisol levels. Second, in both men and women, a larger change in cortisol levels during romantic speed-dating was related to more selectivity. Third, testosterone alone was unrelated to any romantic speed-dating outcome (selectivity or popularity). However, fourth, women who arrived at the romantic speed-dating event with higher testosterone levels were more selective when their anticipatory cortisol response was low. Overall, our findings suggest that changes in the hormone cortisol may be stronger associated with the attraction of a romantic partner than testosterone.

The predictive effects of fear of being single on physical attractiveness and less selective partner selection strategies

Fear of being single (FOBS) tends to predict settling for less when seeking a romantic partner. The present research sought to examine whether this is due, at least in part, to lower physical attractiveness among those who fear being single. In a photo-rating study (Study 1, N = 122) and a speed-dating study (Study 2, N = 171), participants completed the FOBS Scale, rated perceptions of their own physical attractiveness, and were then rated on physical attractiveness by a team of raters. In Studies 1 and 2, FOBS was not significantly associated with judge-rated physical attractiveness as a bivariate association or in hierarchical regressions accounting for anxious and avoidant attachments, gender, and smiling. There were mixed findings in both studies regarding the association between FOBS and self-rated physical attractiveness in bivariate versus multivariate analyses. However, the tendency of those with stronger FOBS to be less selective during speed dating was not explained by either their judge-rated or their self-rated physical attractiveness.

The impact of emotions on romantic judgments: Sequential effects in a speed-dating study

How do our feelings impact the romantic judgments and decisions we make? In a speed-dating context, where people have to judge potential romantic partners sequentially, we investigated whether and ...

Is Romantic Desire Predictable? Machine Learning Applied to Initial Romantic Attraction

Matchmaking companies and theoretical perspectives on close relationships suggest that initial attraction is, to some extent, a product of two people’s self-reported traits and preferences. We used machine learning to test how well such measures predict people’s overall tendencies to romantically desire other people (actor variance) and to be desired by other people (partner variance), as well as people’s desire for specific partners above and beyond actor and partner variance (relationship variance). In two speed-dating studies, romantically unattached individuals completed more than 100 self-report measures about traits and preferences that past researchers have identified as being relevant to mate selection. Each participant met each opposite-sex participant attending a speed-dating event for a 4-min speed date. Random forests models predicted 4% to 18% of actor variance and 7% to 27% of partner variance; crucially, however, they were unable to predict relationship variance using any combination of traits and preferences reported before the dates. These results suggest that compatibility elements of human mating are challenging to predict before two people meet.

Attachment, culture and initial romantic attraction: A speed-dating study

Attachment insecurity is generally associated with low romantic attraction from prospective partners. However, no research has examined the pan-cultural applicability of attachment and initial romantic attraction, referring to the extent to which attachment processes are implicated in romantic attraction across cultures. We examined if attachment insecurity influenced initial romantic attraction in the actor and partner, and whether effects were moderated by culture. Participants (n=93 heterosexual participants, 42 of Western ancestry and 51 of Chinese ancestry) completed a measure of attachment and subsequently completed a speed-dating session. Women were less attracted to men high in attachment avoidance irrespective of culture, though attachment anxiety and avoidance were unrelated to male initial romantic attraction. Chinese women were more attracted to men higher in attachment anxiety, whereas attachment anxiety was unrelated to attraction in Western women. The pan-cultural applicability of attachment and romantic attraction is discussed, with particular focus on the extent to which attachment influences romantic attraction across cultures.

Mate preferences do predict attraction and choices in the early stages of mate selection.

Although mate preference research has firmly established that men value physical attractiveness more than women do and women value social status more than men do, recent speed-dating studies have indicated mixed evidence (at best) for whether people's sex-differentiated mate preferences predict actual mate choices. According to an evolutionary, mate preference priority model (Li, Bailey, Kenrick, & Linsenmeier, 2002; Li & Kenrick, 2006; Li, Valentine, & Patel, 2011), the sexes are largely similar in what they ideally like, but for long-term mates, they should differ on what they most want to avoid in early selection contexts. Following this model, we conducted experiments using online messaging and modified speed-dating platforms. Results indicate that when a mating pool includes people at the low end of social status and physical attractiveness, mate choice criteria are sex-differentiated: Men, more than women, chose mates based on physical attractiveness, whereas women, more than men, chose mates based on social status. In addition, individuals who more greatly valued social status or physical attractiveness on paper valued these traits more in their actual choices. In particular, mate choices were sex-differentiated when considering long-term relationships but not short-term ones, where both sexes shunned partners with low physical attractiveness. The findings validate a large body of mate preferences research and an evolutionary perspective on mating, and they have implications for research using speed-dating and other interactive contexts.

Blind Dates and Mate Preferences: An Analysis of Newspaper Matchmaking Columns

Parental investment theory and sexual strategies theory predict that women and men should differ on many of the criteria by which they choose mates. These theories posit a gender selectivity effect, such that women should be more selective than men in their mating choices. The theories also posit an age differential effect, such that women should seek older mates, and men should seek younger mates. These two hypotheses have been supported by self-report surveys, speed-dating studies, analysis of on-line and newspaper personal ads, and laboratory analog studies. However, each of these data sources has limitations. Therefore, a new source of data may provide a valuable additional test of the robustness of these effects. The current study examined two independent sources of data involving blind dates arranged and paid for by newspapers. Consistent with the first hypothesis, we found women to be more selective than men. We also found that matchmakers tended to pair older men with younger women, consistent with the second hypothesis. However, contrary to the second hypothesis, we found no evidence that the age differential between members of a couple influenced their ratings of the date. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Blind dates and mate preferences: an analysis of newspaper matchmaking columns.

Parental investment theory and sexual strategies theory predict that women and men should differ on many of the criteria by which they choose mates. These theories posit a gender selectivity effect, such that women should be more selective than men in their mating choices. The theories also posit an age differential effect, such that women should seek older mates, and men should seek younger mates. These two hypotheses have been supported by self-report surveys, speed-dating studies, analysis of on-line and newspaper personal ads, and laboratory analog studies. However, each of these data sources has limitations. Therefore, a new source of data may provide a valuable additional test of the robustness of these effects. The current study examined two independent sources of data involving blind dates arranged and paid for by newspapers. Consistent with the first hypothesis, we found women to be more selective than men. We also found that matchmakers tended to pair older men with younger women, consistent with the second hypothesis. However, contrary to the second hypothesis, we found no evidence that the age differential between members of a couple influenced their ratings of the date. The implications of these findings are discussed.