Males And Females Physical Attractiveness Essay - 932 words

College Interpersonal Attraction and Maintenance Being attractive or liked is an important characteristic to many college students. The lives of many students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison involve a lot of socializing and partying. Many students go out to the bars or party every weekend and some students are looking to meet someone. The intentions vary among students in regards to relationships due to the busy schedules students have.


Some people are looking for someone to hang out with and date, some are looking for more friends and others are looking for a long term, serious relationship. This research will specifically study what attracts people to one another. The initial attraction between two people will be analyzed as well as what traits are most important to each sex in relation to attraction. The importance of this research pertains to all college students who are looking to meet a special someone.


Each person would surely like to know what the other sex is attracted to when initially meeting someone and what will keep them in a relationship, if so desired. Learning the difference between what a female and male looks for is very interesting. Males may claim to know what a female wants, but research such as this may actually surprise them. The interest I have in this research is probably the same as all males, what are girls looking for in a guy. What is the first thing a girl notices? Being the type of guy that is not afraid of committing to a girl, my interests are also in what characteristics girls want in a serious relationship.


Susan Sprecher (1998), a professor of sociology at Illinois State University, found interesting results when studying the initial attraction of two people. Using survey analysis, she found that physical attractiveness is a more important characteristic in initial attraction versus maintenance of attraction. Physical attractiveness is a visible quality that may bring people together, but seems to be less important in maintaining an attraction. Sprecher (1998) also found that proximity plays a key role in initial attraction. Proximity is important for initiating and developing a relationship, but is may not be needed in order to maintain it. In Vogels (1999) study of dating relationships, he found that a male will withdraw from discussing important topics while a female will typically demand more.


This may be explained by the stereotype that men dont disclose themselves as easily as females. This results in a male withdrawal / female demand type of relationship which can lead to the relationship having problems. Overall, Vogel (1999) also found that an equal demand by both participants in a dating relationship results in the relationship lasting longer. These results pertain to attraction maintenance. Obviously, if two people contribute equally to a relationship, it is most lik ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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Essay Tags: college students, physical attractiveness, social psychology, males and females, important characteristic

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