Interpersonal attraction

Interpersonal attraction: positive evaluation of other people, the strength of liking or loving another person. Attraction between people leads to platonic or romantic relationships. It is a process distinct from perceptions of physical attractiveness, which involves views of what is and is not considered beautiful or attractive.

Need for affiliation: the need to interact with other people in a cooperative way. All humans have a need for affiliation, but there is an individual variance in its strength.

Physical attractiveness: characteristics that are evaluated as beautiful or handsome vs unattractive, element of romantic attraction

We like those who look familiar, similar, physically attractive and those who like us back.

• Propinquity effect: the more we see and interact with a person, the more likely they are to become our friend or partner. This effect is very similar to the mere exposure effect in that the more a person is exposed to a stimulus, the more a person likes it. Festinger, Schachter & Back (1950): in a block of flats, 41% of next-door neighbours indicated they were close friends. This was compared to 22% of those who lived 2 doors apart, and only 10% of those who lived on opposite ends of the hall.
• Mere exposure effect: the more someone is exposed to something, the more they come to like it. This rule applies equally to both objects and people (Miller, Perlman & Brehm, 2006). The smaller the physical distance between people, the greater the possiblity they'd meet, experience repeated exposure and develop positive affect and mutual attraction. This effect is subtle, powerful and general. Richard, Beach, & Scott (1992): researchers had 4 women of similar appearance attend a large college course over a semester such that each woman attended a different number of sessions (0, 5, 10, or 15). Students then rated the women for perceived familiarity, attractiveness and similarity at the end of the term. Results indicated a strong effect of exposure on attraction that was mediated by the effect of exposure on familiarity. Positive affect elicits perception of familiarty. A beautiful face, even seen for the first time is perceived as more familiar than an unattractive face (Monin, 2003).

• Similarity: research overwhelmingly supports similarity in attraction, not "opposites attract". Greater similarity leads to more liking. Newcomb (1961): college men became friends with those who were similar in demographics, attitudes, and values. We seek physical proximity to those similar in appearance and in degree of physical attractiveness.
• Physical attractiveness: has a strong effect on interpersonal attraction and influences social behaviour (Vogel et al, 2010). After an arranged date when participants danced, talked and spent time together, the most important factor affecting evaluation of their date was their physical attractiveness (Walster et al, 1966). One year old infants prefer attractive to unattractive faces (Langois et al, 1991).

Beauty has been associated with: better health outcomes for infants in hospitals, better earnings, better teaching evaluations, and winning elections. Halo effect: cognitive bias by which we tend to assume an individual with one positive characteristic also posesses other (even unrelated) positive characteristics. Beautiful people are thought to be more sociable, extraverted, popular, sexual, happy, and assertive. Highly attractive people do develop good social interaction skills and report having more satisfying interactions with others. May be due to self-fulfilling prophecy?

• Attractiveness is associated with popularity, good interpersonal skills and high self-esteem (Diener et al, 1995)
• Attractive people are liked which makes them feel better about themselves (Zebrowitz et al, 1998)
• Attractive people earn higher salaries at work and get better evaluations (Frieze, Olson & Russell, 1991)
• If men talking to women on the phone believe she is attractive, it elicits warmer and friendlier responses (Snyder, Tanke & Berscheid, 1977)

There is good agreement among people, including children and within and across cultures about which people are most physically attractive (Berry, 2000). In women, cute, child-like features or mature looks with prominent cheekbones, and high eyebrows are attractive (Cunningham, 1986). In men, cute boyish looks or mature and masculine are attractive (Rhodes, 2006). Symmetrical faces are preferred because they seem more healthy (Rhodes, 2006). Thin and physically fit figures are preferred in modern Western culture, but not 50 years ago (Crandall, Merman & Hebl, 2009).

Goal of human behaviour = maximising transmission of genes. Men and women have biological differences that lead to different strategies in mate selection. In women, there is higher biological investment in offspring because of the limited capacity they have to reproduce. There is certainty about biological relationship to offspring. In men, there is unlimited capacity to reproduce, but paternity uncertainty.

Buss (1989): tested sex differences in 9000 people in 37 cultures. Men desired physical attractiveness and younger partners. Youth and beauty displays reproductive fitness. Men are looking for cues to fertility in their partners - men have a preference for women with a low waist-to-hip ratio across cultures, which is likely to indicate fertility. For women, they desired those able to provide resources and older partners. Power and ability to raise and protect offspring is most important. For men, the physical attractiveness of women is most important. Women are also interested in the attractiveness of men, but are relatively more interested in the social status of a potential partner (Li, Bailey, Kenrick & Linsenmeier, 2002).

Personal ads men placed searching for a partner focus on preferred physical appearance. Ones placed by women are more likely to specify preferred partner's status and material resources (Harrison & Saeed, 1977).

Around the world, both males and females prefer partners who offer: warmth and loyalty, attractiveness and vitality, status and resources, and honesty, humour and intelligence (Fletcher, 2002).

The hormones released during the female menstrual cycle influence women's attraction men. Women become more attracted to men when they are most likely to become pregnant, and especially to men with symmetrical and masculine characteristics, which signal health and genetic fit (Gangestad, Thornhill & Garver-Apgar, 2005).

Love: a commitment device. Helps avoid threats to the relationship of people that together, care for an offspring (Taylor & Gonzaga, 2006). Romantic love reminders decreased attention to faces of attractive opposite sex people among those in committed relationships (Maner, Rouby & Gonzaga, 2008). The experience of romantic love is also associated with the release of oxytocin (Gonzaga, Turner, Keltner, Campos & Altemus, 2006)