Posted on 12/21/2004 3:59:39 PM PST by beavus
ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Men are more likely to want to marry women who are their assistants at work rather than their colleagues or bosses, a University of Michigan study finds.
The study, published in the current issue of Evolution and Human Behavior, highlights the importance of relational dominance in mate selection and discusses the evolutionary utility of male concerns about mating with dominant females.
"These findings provide empirical support for the widespread belief that powerful women are at a disadvantage in the marriage market because men may prefer to marry less accomplished women," said Stephanie Brown, lead author of the study and a social psychologist at the U-M Institute for Social Research (ISR).
For the study, supported in part by a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, Brown and co-author Brian Lewis from UCLA tested 120 male and 208 female undergraduates by asking them to rate their attraction and desire to affiliate with a man and a woman they were said to know from work.
"Imagine that you have just taken a job and that Jennifer (or John) is your immediate supervisor (or your peer, or your assistant)," study participants were told as they were shown a photo of a male or a female.
After seeing the photo and hearing the description of the person's role at work in relation to their own, participants were asked to use a 9-point Likert scale (1 is not at all, 9 is very much) to rate the extent to which they would enjoy going to a party with Jennifer or John, exercising with the person, dating the person and marrying the person.
Brown and Lewis found that males, but not females, were most strongly attracted to subordinate partners for high-investment activities such as marriage and dating.
"Our results demonstrate that male preference for subordinate women increases as the investment in the relationship increases," Brown said. "This pattern is consistent with the possibility that there were reproductive advantages for males who preferred to form long-term relationships with relatively subordinate partners.
"Given that female infidelity is a severe reproductive threat to males only when investment is high, a preference for subordinate partners may provide adaptive benefits to males in the context of only long-term, investing relationships---not one-night stands."
According to Brown, who is affiliated with the ISR Evolution and Human Adaptation Program, the current findings are consistent with earlier research showing that expressions of vulnerability enhance female attractiveness. "Our results also provide further explanation for why males might attend to dominance-linked characteristics of women such as relative age or income, and why adult males typically prefer partners who are younger and make less money."
For more information on the ISR Evolution and Human Adaptation Program, visit: http://rcgd.isr.umich.edu/ehap/
sounds like those men want to be a pimp.
Still true for some women, the rest are there for their b*tch degrees.
(flame suit on)
The woman men surround themselves with will either help or hinder those two ambitions.
I went to college because my mom had nearly starved as a girl, so it was her way of assuring that I wouldn't go hungry (married or not). When Dad died, he left the girls out of the will because "we would have husbands to take care of us". Which, at the time really bit because I was putting myself through college and couldn't afford toilet paper. I was raised 100 years behind the times.
So, as long as I could remember, I wanted the house with the white picket fence and the 6 kids, baking cookies at Christmas, baskets of kittens in the barn, cuddles in front of the fire. Some to mimic my own childhood, lots to make up for the bad things in it too. But, it all turned out differently (and I take total responsibilty for my tendency to walk off cliffs without looking.)
Which is why, at this point in my life, I have become more of an observer taking notes ;)
This is different from the woman for which the job is the measure of success (often even after children)
Neither of our positions is wholly right or wrong, My cases in point are stereotypical of the overly masculine, 'uncultured', abusive type (a generalization). I do agree, however that women have the "status filter" having the laser sight pointed my direction on my share of occaisions. I think it has to do with the innate mother instinct in some cases. Choosing the most suitable mate for the care of the offspring. Another generalization due to the decreasing number of women whose main goal is a family.
AHHHhhh,
That is it...
My mom was an educated, strong woman,
but her greatest sucesses were us, her kids.
You will never be capable of receiving or giving love until you love yourself. You are not a loser, but only some therapy or other similar remedies will help you see that.
It does! In my experience, of course. Remember, I said "not all!!"
And does that mean that while many FR men adore Ann Coulter, none would want to marry her?
You have no idea what an accurate statement that is, LOL.
I wouldn't. Too much of an age difference.(15 years)
Good point. The status-filter is only applied to nice guys. A nice guy needs a job, income, etc -- for some odd reason a "bad boy" does not.
Oh, Please, men marry subordinate woman...if that is even accurate...because men want to feel as if they are the provider, not because of control, but because it is in the nature of a man to provide for the woman, to act like a man.
Women who need NO provider, who make more money;... make their boyfriends or husbands nothing more than pool boys and dispensible.
Almost anways.
Men want to know they are the provider, they are the dragon slayer, they are the reason she is safe, she is fed, that she is clothed and housed because of the work he did by the sweat of his brow (or keyboard).
To just kick back and let the woman work superior to the man, if the man does not find something to be considered work to add something to the relationship as provider, THAT IS NOT A MAN!
In this day and age, it is quite possible that the woman will earn more. If her man doesnt get on his hands and knees looking for work to add to the family, he is scum and he knows it.
For a man to just kick back and LET her lead, that man is a coward and a user.
That is why men want to marry a woman who is not as established as he is: He wants to be the leader and provider in the family.
If he has any male genes in him anways.
bttt
I like strong women.
Actually, I HAVE asked that question. With 3 different women who broke my heart. In all 3 cases, it was well over a year when I asked them, "Please, just tell me WHY you suddenly backed off and decided you didn't want me." All three evaded the question.
(I have come to realize that the male translation of "soul mate" is "A breathing non-bagger with 38 DD's")
Not necessarily. One of my "soul mates" was only of average attractiveness. Another one wasn't physically appealing to me at all, not in the slightest, so we were never more than friends.
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