The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast

This month, The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast bows out with a special from the European Human Behavior and Evolution Association Conference in Toulouse! Thanks for listening, everyone: it's been real.I speak to Ayten Yeşim Semchenko about how men and women choose partners when they have limited information about their romantic prospects; to Linda Lidborg about the possible links between a father's testosterone levels and the sexual behaviour of his adolescent offspring; and to Lucie Kuncová about whether we 'imprint' on our parents' odour and later find people with a similar odour more attractive. Yeşim mentioned a study I covered on the podcast a few years ago, about whether people can judge the attractiveness of others just by looking at the back of their heads. Here is a link to the transcript of that episode. Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. The sun sets in Toulouse, and on The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast. Flickr/Maxime Bober

This month, we interrogate the psychology of the faithful and the faithless. Why do some people pass up the opportunity to cheat on their partners? And, when people do cheat, how do they justify their behaviour?Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! 8 Reasons Not to Cheat “It Didn’t Mean Anything.”It's never the right time to leave. Freestocks.The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast: 2009-2019 This month's episode marks the 10th anniversary of the podcast, and will also be the final regular episode. I started The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast exactly 10 years ago, in April 2009. When I began, I had no endpoint in mind. Neither did I think that 10 years later I would still be doing it. If I cast my mind back to the spring of 2009, I remember assuming that I would continue with the podcast until I started lecturing. However, my career took a different path: a succession of fixed-term teaching and research posts has taken me from America, back to England, to Scotland, and now to Switzerland. Although I sometimes teach and supervise students, my workload never shot up overnight as I expected it would. This meant that the day never arrived when it was obvious I had to stop. The approaching anniversary has presented me with the opportunity to reflect on how far the podcast has come and where I want it to go from here. More people are listening to the podcast now than ever. I still enjoy choosing research to talk about and recording and editing each show. But I have realised that I no longer have enough time to devote to The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast. I would like to spend more time thinking and writing, without the pressure to put out a podcast every four weeks. I am sure this will be disappointing to many of you who have been listening to the podcast for a long time. I want to thank you for sticking with me. I will continue to write about the psychology of attraction, and you will be able to read my blogs here. I also hope you'll stay subscribed to the podcast: although I will no longer post regular monthly episodes, I will occasionally put out special episodes. The first of these will appear in your feed next month, and will feature interviews from the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association Conference in Toulouse. Until then, thanks for listening to The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast! The articles covered in the show: Apostelou, M., & Panayiotou, R. (2019). The reasons that prevent people from cheating on their partners: an evolutionary account of the propensity not to cheat. Personality and Individual Differences, 146, 34-40. Read summaryWarach, B., Josephs, L., & Gorman, B. S. (in press). Are cheaters sexual hypocrites? Sexual hypocrisy, the self-serving bias, and personality style. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Read summary

This month, we investigate faking orgasm. Who fakes orgasms, and why? We also find out how men and women weigh up the relative importance of facial and bodily attractiveness in a partner.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Faking Orgasm: Who Fakes and Why? Face or Body: Which Traits Attract a Partner for Committed or Brief Relationships? Look like they're having fun. But are they just faking it? Flickr/Jessica WüstThe articles covered in the show: Jonason, P. K. (2019). Reasons to pretend to orgasm and the mating psychology of those who endorse them. Personality and Individual Differences, 143, 90-94. Read summaryZaidi, A. A., White, J. D., Mattern, B. C., Liebowitz, C. R., Puts, D. A., Claes, P., et al. (in press). Facial masculinity does not appear to be a condition-dependent male ornament and does not reflect MHC heterozygosity in humans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read summary

In this month's episode we look at how men and women's partner preferences are affected by a dose of oxytocin, aka "the love hormone". We'll also find out whether germophobes are more or less likely to pursue short-term relationships.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Disgust and Short-Term Relationships Oxytocin and Mate-ChoiceHow does oxytocin affect men and women's partner preferences? FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Al-Shawaf, L., Lewis, D. M. G., Ghossainy, M. E., & Buss, D. M. (in press). Experimentally inducing disgust reduces desire for short-term mating. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summaryXu, L., Becker, B., Luo, R., Zheng, X., Zhao, W., Zhang, Q., et al. (2018). Oxytocin amplifies sex differences in human mate choice. BioRxiv. Read preprint

I'm back after a holiday break to look at the psychology of appearance enhancement: what does our use of cosmetics say about us to other people? This episode also features an interview with Matthew Vazquez of California State University San Bernardino, who presented his research exploring the complexities of mate attraction at the 2018 HBES conference.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! What do People Think of Women Who Use Cosmetics and Cosmetic Surgery?Does the use of make up, and other efforts at appearance enhancement, affect how we are seen by others? FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Bradshaw, H. K., Profitt Leyva, R., Nicolas, S. C. A., & Hill, S. E. (2019). Costly female appearance-enhancement provides cues of short-term mating effort: The case of cosmetic surgery. Personality and Individual Differences, 138, 48-55. Read summaryDelPriore, D. J., Bradshaw, H. K., & Hill, S. E. (2018). Appearance enhancement produces a strategic beautification penalty among women. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, 12(4), 348-366. Read summaryVazquez, M., Cisneros, A., & Goetz, C. (2018). Mate value discrepancies and relationship satisfaction in heterosexual and non-heterosexual romantic relationships. Poster presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society Annual Conference.

Why are we attracted to attractive people? Perhaps because evolution has shaped us to seek healthy and fertile partners. But is beauty really linked to biological fitness? We find out. This episode also features an interview with Kai Hiraishi of Keio University, who presented his research on men's over-perception of women's sexual intent at this summer's HBES conference.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Does an Hourglass Figure Really Signal Fertility? Does Beauty Signal Health?Are attractive people healthier and more fertile? Previous assumptions are being overturned. FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Cai, Z., Hahn, A. C., Zhang, W., Holzleitner, I. J., Lee, A. J., DeBruine, L. M., et al. (in press). No evidence that facial attractiveness, femininity, averageness, or coloration are cues to susceptibility to infectious illnesses in a university sample of young adult women. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summaryHiraishi, K., Kawahata, Y., Nomura, K., & Shigematsu, H. (2018). Women's perception of men's overperception of women's sexual-intent and what she says she really wants. Poster presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society Annual Conference.Lassek, W. B., & Gaulin, S. J. C. (in press). Do the low WHRs and SMIs judged most attractive indicate higher fertility? Evolutionary Psychology. Read summary

This month, is pursuing sex with an ex likely to help or hinder your recovery from a breakup? And we find out why a team of psychologists from Michigan brought volunteers to their lab to look at a rabbit and a snake. This episode also features an interview with Vicky Leigh of Glasgow University, who presented her research on sexual imprinting at the recent HBES conference.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Sex with an Ex: Good or Bad for Breakup Recovery? The Snake and the Rabbit: Animal Influences on Human Mate Choice Would looking at this rabbit (or a snake) affect what you find attractive in a partner? freestocksThe articles covered in the show: Leigh, V., Jones, B., & DeBruine, L. (2018). Bisexual women show positive sexual imprinting on the partner-sex parent for eye colour. Poster presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society Annual Conference.Reeve, S. D., Mogilski, J. K., & Welling, L. L. M. (in press). Environmental safety threat alters mate choice processes in humans: further evidence for the Environmental Security Hypothesis. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summarySpielmann, S. S., Joel, S., & Impett, E. A. (in press). Pursuing sex with an ex: does it hinder breakup recovery? Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summary

This month we sniff out the link between sex and a sense of smell, and we'll ask: how much should a engagement ring really cost? Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! How Much to Spend on an Engagement Ring? Sex Smells If you need to get this close to sniff out a partner, you should get your nose tested. FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Bendas, J., Hummel, T., & Croy, I. (in press). Olfactory function relates to sexual experience in adults. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryCloud, J. M., & Taylor, M. H. (in press). The effect of mate value discrepancy on hypothetical engagement ring purchases. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summary

In this month's episode we look at sexuality: why do people who identify as straight sometimes hookup with partners of the same gender? We'll also find out if straight men prefer women who are attracted to other women. This episode also features an interview with Sydni Huxman of Kansas State University, who presented her research on backup partners at the recent HBES conference.Download the MP3 Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Straight Man Seeks… Who?Can men and women identify as straight but still hookup with same-gender partners? Joanna Malinowska/FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Apostelou, M., Wang, Y., & O, J. (2018). Do men prefer women who are attracted to women? A cross-cultural evolutionary investigation. Personality and Individual Differences, 135, 31-39. Read summaryHuxman, S. A. J., Brandner, J. L., & Brase, G. L. (2018). Friends with potential benefits: Exploring the relationships between individual differences and backup mates. Poster presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society Annual Conference.Kuperberg, A., & Walker, A. (2018). Heterosexual college students who hookup with same-sex partners. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47(5), 1387-1403. Read summary

This month I tell some dirty and clean jokes: whether or not you laugh may say something about the kind of relationship that suits you best. We'll also find out why some of us are uneasy with relationships between people with a big age difference. And, in the first of my interviews from the recent Human Behavior and Evolution Society conference in Amsterdam, I speak with Dr. Anthony Lee of Glasgow University about his research on internet dating. Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Subscribe! Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher. Read the transcript! Why do People Condemn Age-Discrepant Relationships? Is a Dirty Joke a Good Chat Up Line?His joke may have been filthier than a sack of compost, but it sure was funny. Brian Wolfe/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Lee, A. (2018). Investigating mate preferences through a data-driven analysis of online personal descriptions. Paper presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society Annual Conference.Medlin, M. M., Brown, M., & Sacco, D. F. (2018). That's what she said! Perceived mate value of clean and dirty humor displays. Personality and Individual Differences, 135, 192-200. Read summarySela, Y., Pham, M. N., Mogilski, J. K., Lopes, G. S., Shackelford, T. K., & Zeigler-Hill, V. (2018). Why do people disparage May–December romances? Condemnation of age-discrepant romantic relationships as strategic moralization. Personality and Individual Differences, 130, 6-10. Read summary

In this month's episode we look at dating apps, and how the way we interact with them is influenced by our sociosexuality (aka our willingness to engage in casual sex).Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Dating Apps and Mating StrategiesDoes our 'sociosexuality' affect how we behave on dating apps, like Tinder? Freestocks.The articles covered in the show: Botnen, E. O., Bendixen, M., Grøntvedt, T. V., & Kennair, L. E. O. (2018). Individual differences in sociosexuality predict picture-based mobile dating app use. Personality and Individual Differences, 131, 67-73. Read summaryHallam, L., De Backer, C. J. S., Fisher, M. L., & Walrave, M. (in press). Are sex differences in mating strategies overrated? Sociosexual orientation as a dominant predictor in online dating strategies. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summary

It can't have failed to escape you that psychology is in the midst of a replication crisis. Research findings previously thought to be solid and reliable have proven anything but, as teams of independent researchers have tried -- and failed -- to repeat the original experiments.On The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast I might be guilty of focussing too much on the most exciting new findings: findings that may or may not be supported by later research. So in this episode we'll look at a few replication studies that have recently called into question effects that we've talked about before on the show. Are women's partner preferences influenced by their menstrual cycle or hormonal contraceptives? We'll find out.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! The Replication Crisis: New Research on Human Attraction"Hi, did you hear? The results of your PhD thesis have been overturned OK byeee!" Freestocks.orgThe articles covered in the show: Jern, P., Kärnä, A., Hujanen, J., Erlin, T., Gunst, A., Rautaheimo, H., et al. (in press). A high-powered replication study finds no effect of starting or stopping hormonal contraceptive use on relationship quality. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summaryJones, B. C., Hahn, A. C., Fisher, A. D., Wang, H., Kandrik, M., Han, C., et al. (2017). No compelling evidence that preferences for facial masculinity track changes in women's hormonal status. bioRxiv. Read paperJünger, J., Kordsmeyer, T. L., Gerlach, T. M., & Penke, L. (2018). Fertile women evaluate male bodies as more attractive, regardless of masculinity. PsyArXiv. Read paperJünger, J., Motta-Mena, N. V., Cárdenas, R. A., Bailey, D. H., Rosenfeld, K., Schild, C., et al. (2018). Do women's preferences for masculine voices shift across the ovulatory cycle? PsyArXiv. Read summaryMarcinkowska, U., Hahn, A. C., Little, A. C., DeBruine, L. M., & Jones, B. C. (2018). No evidence that women using oral contraceptives have weaker preferences for masculine characteristics in men’s faces. Read paper

This month, how to love the one you're with. We find out why we prefer to stick with the partner we know than ditching them for someone new. We'll also discover how controlling our wandering eyes can keep our relationships strong.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! The Danger of a Wandering Eye Loving the One You’re With Why do we stick with our partners, despite temptations to stray? Joanna Malinowska/FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Gunaydin, G., Selcuk, E., Yilmaz, C., & Hazen, C. (in press). I have, therefore I love: status quo preference in mate choice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Read summaryMcNulty, J. K., Meltzer, A. L., Makhanova, A., & Maner, J. K. (in press). Attentional and evaluative biases help people maintain relationships by avoiding infidelity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Read summary

What type of person is likely to give up the ghost and leave their partners without warning? We also investigate deceptive affection: is it an effective tactic for keeping a relationship strong?Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Deceptive Affection: Expressing More Love for a Partner Than we Feel Ghosting: Why Some End Relationships by DisappearingDoes it matter if affection is real or a deception? Joanna Malinowska/FreestocksThe articles covered in the show: Freedman, G., Powell, D. N., Le, B., & Williams, K. D. (in press). Ghosting and destiny: Implicit theories of relationships predict beliefs about ghosting. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summaryRedlick, M. H., & Vangeslisti, A. L. (in press). Affection, deception, and evolution: deceptive affectionate messages as mate retention behaviors. Evolutionary Psychology. Read summary

Sexual aggression is a serious subject, and one we should strive to better understand. In this episode, we find out why some men retaliate aggressively when they are rejected. We also learn about the links between sexual coercion, money, and risk-tasking; and how college students rebuff unwanted sexual advances.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Why Do Some Men Respond Aggressively When Rejected? Saying No to Sex Impulsivity and Sexual CoercionNew research reveals a link between impulsive finanicial decision-making and sexual coercion in college-aged men. kris krüg/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Carrier Emond, F., Gagnon, J., Nolet, K., Cyr, G., & Rouleau, J.-L. (in press). What money can't buy: different patterns in decision making about sex and money predict past sexual coercion perpetration. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryMarcantonio, T. L., Jozkowski, K. N., & Lo, W.-J. (in press). Beyond “just saying no”: a preliminary evaluation of strategies college students use to refuse sexual activity. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryStratmoen, E., Greer, M. M., Martens, A. L., & Saucier, D. A. (2018). What, I′m not good enough for you? Individual differences in masculine honor beliefs and the endorsement of aggressive responses to romantic rejection. Personality and Individual Differences, 123, 151-162. Read summary

This month we have a pair of studies chosen by Patreon supporters of the podcast. We find out if bullies have more sex, and whether a person's physical attractiveness or personal values better explain their appeal as a long-term partner.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Bullying and the Mating Motive Social Values: How to Attract a Long-Term Partner Are they attracted by appearance or by attitudes and values? Joanna Malinowska/Freestocks.orgThe articles covered in the show: Lopes, G. S., Barbaro, N., Sela, Y., Jeffery, A. J., Pham, M. N., Shackelford, T. K., et al. (2017). Endorsement of social and personal values predicts the desirability of men and women as long-term-partners. Evolutionary Psychology, 15(4). Read summaryProvenzano, D. A., Dane, A. V., Farrell, A. H., Marini, Z. A., & Volk, A. A. (in press). Do bullies have more sex? The role of personality. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summary

This month, we're talking about the consequences of a wandering eye. Does contemplating infidelity make a person more suspicious that their own partner might be a cheater? And “should I stay or should I go?” -- how do we decide to respond after discovering our partner has strayed?Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Stick or Twist: Deciding to Leave or Remain in a Relationship After Infidelity Is Jealousy a Sign Your Partner is Likely to be Unfaithful?ThoroughlyReviewed/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Neal, A. M., & Lemay, E. P. (in press). The wandering eye perceives more threats: Projection of attraction to alternative partners predicts anger and negative behavior in romantic relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summaryShrout, M. R., & Weigel, D. J. (in press). “Should I stay or should I go?” Understanding the noninvolved partner’s decision-making process following infidelity. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summary

This month we examine inter-generational effects on attraction. Almost everyone likes looking at baby photos, but what effect does this innocent activity have on our mating psychology? We'll also discover how the body type women and men prefer in their partners can be influenced by their own fathers' physique. And I present the results of the recent (and first ever) listener survey. Who's listening and what do you want from the show? We'll find out.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Baby Photos Increase Desire for Marriage Just Like Daddy: Our Unconscious Attraction to Partners Who Look Like Our ParentsMarriage fuel! Does looking at this baby photo increase your desire for a long-term relationship? Stephen Ramsay/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Lord, C. G., Holland, C. J., & Hill, S. E. (2018). Individual differences in the effects of baby images on attitudes toward getting married. Personality and Individual Differences, 121, 106-110. Read summaryŠtěrbová, Z., Trébický, V., Havlíček, J., Tureček, P., Varella, A. M. C., & Valentova, J. V. (2017). Father's physique influences mate preferences but not the actual choice of male somatotype in heterosexual women and homosexual men. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summary

Looking healthy is vital to an attractive appearance. But how do we judge a person's healthiness? We find out how face shape and colour influence our perceptions of health, and revisit the idea of limbal rings: a part of the eye that gives away our health and age.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! The Eyes Have It: Limbal Rings and Attraction What Makes a Healthy Face?The eye is the window to your... health? The eye on the left has an exaggerated limbal ring. Modified from Joanna Malinowska/freestocks.orgThe articles covered in the show: Brown, M., & Sacco, D. F. (in press). Put a (limbal) ring on it: Women perceive men's limbal rings as a health cue in short-term mating domains. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Read summaryJones, A. L. (in press). The influence of shape and colour cue classes on facial health perception. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summary

Why do people have cosmetic surgery, and how do cosmetic surgery advertisements make women feel about themselves and behave towards their partners? I also speak to Dr. Sylvie Borau of the Toulouse Business School about her new research on how sexy advertisements trigger women's competitive urges.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Why Undergo Cosmetic Surgery?How do sexy swimwear advertisements affect women's competitive urges? Mike Monoghan/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Ashikali, E.-M., Dittmar, H., & Ayers, S. (2017). The impact of cosmetic surgery advertising on Swiss women's body image and attitudes toward cosmetic surgery. Swiss Journal of Psychology, 76(1), 13-21. Read summaryAtari, M., Barbaro, N., Sela, Y., Shackelford, T. K., & Chegeni, R. (in press). Consideration of cosmetic surgery as part of women's benefit-provisioning mate retention strategy. Frontiers in Psychology. Read summaryBorau, S., & Bonnefon, J.-F. (in press). The imaginary intrasexual competition: Advertisements featuring provocative female models trigger women to engage in indirect aggression. Journal of Business Ethics. Read summary

Is there any truth to the cliche of the man who can't talk to a woman without tearing his eyes away from her body? We find out. Also, are we more likely to remember attractive or unattractive faces, even after seeing them for just a split second? And Dr. Evita March is back to talk about her research on sharing explicit images (AKA sending dick pics).Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Eye-Gaze and AttractionMale gaze. The articles covered in the show: Gillath, O., Bahns, A. J., & Burghart, H. A. (in press). Eye movements when looking at potential friends and romantic partners. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryNakamura, K., Arai, S., & Kawabata, H. (in press). Prioritized identification of attractive and romantic partner faces in rapid serial visual presentation. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryMarch, E., & Wagstaff, D. (2017). Explicit Image Orientation: The role of sex, personality, and mate value. Paper presented at the conference of the International Society for the Study of Individual Differences, Warsaw.

Nobody likes to discover that their partner is cheating on them, but how do we react when infidelity is exposed on social media? And can you tell if someone is a cheater by their voice alone? I also speak with Dr. Evita March of Federation University, Australia, about her research on selfies and narcissism.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Discovering Infidelity on Facebook The Voice of a CheaterWho knows what this couple are up to on their laptops? Probably just playing Solitaire... CGP Grey/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Dunn, M. J., & Billett, G. (in press). Jealousy levels in response to infidelity-revealing facebook messages depend on sex, type of message and message composer: Support for the evolutionary psychological perspective. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summaryHughes, S. M., & Harrison, M. A. (2017). Your cheatin’ voice will tell on you: Detection of past infidelity from voice. Evolutionary Psychology, 15(2), 1474704917711513. Read summaryMarch, E., & McBean, T. (2017). Love looking at your self(ie)? The moderating effect of self-esteem on narcissism. Poster presented at the conference of the International Society for the Study of Individual Differences, Warsaw.

Do men and women have different tactics for making up after a fight? And do couples resolve sexual and non-sexual conflicts differently? We'll find out in this episode about conflict resolution. I also talk to Dr. Sylvie Borau about her research on gendered marketing.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! The 5 Most Effective Ways to Reconcile After Romantic Conflict How Couples Resolve Disagreements About Sex How do couples resolve their conflicts? Hernán Piñera/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Borau, S., & Bonnefon, J.-F. (2017). Gendered products confer asymmetric benefits to the mate value of male and female consumers. Poster presented at the conference of the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association, Paris. Rehman, U. S., Lizdek, I., Fallis, E. E., Sutherland, S., & Goodnight, J. A. (in press). How is sexual communication different from nonsexual communication? A moment-by-moment analysis of discussions between romantic partners. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summaryWade, T. J., Mogilski, J., & Schoenberg, R. (in press). Sex differences in reconciliation behavior after romantic conflict. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summary

Earlier this year I posted a bonus episode featuring contributions from students in my undergraduate seminar here at Basel University. It proved to be one of the more popular episodes of the podcast. This semester I taught a masters level class on the evolutionary psychology of mate preference and, again, gave the students the task of summarising the research papers they found most interesting for a special bonus episode. As before, most of the students are not native English speakers, nor have they recorded audio before. I am super grateful they agreed to be a part of the podcast (especially after I freaked them out by telling them how many people listened to the previous bonus episode!).Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Mittlere Rheinbruecke, Basel. Mariano Mantel/FlickrThe articles covered in the show (in order of appearance): Sebastiaan: Singh, D. & Luis, S. (1995). Ethnic and gender consensus for the effect of waist-to-hip ratio on judgment of women's attractiveness. Human Nature, 6(1), 51-65. Read summaryElena: Olderbak, S. G., Malter, F., Wolf, P. S. A., Jones, D. N., & Figueredo, A. J. (2017). Predicting romantic interest at zero acquaintance: Evidence of sex differences in trait perception but not in predictors of interest. European Journal of Personality, 31(1), 42-62. Read summaryLara: Ha, T., van den Berg, J. E. M., Engels, R. C. M. E., & Lichtwarck-Aschoff, A. (2012). Effects of attractiveness and status in dating desire in homosexual and heterosexual men and women. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41(3), 673-682. Read summaryBabice: Dixson, B. J., Vasey, P. L., Sagata, K., Sibanda, N., Linklater, W. L., & Dixson, A. F. (2011). Men’s preferences for women’s breast morphology in New Zealand, Samoa, and Papua New Guinea. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40(6), 1271-1279. Read summaryKatrin: Sherlock, J. M., Sidari, M. J., Harris, E. A., Barlow, F. K., & Zietsch, B. P. (2016). Testing the mate-choice hypothesis of the female orgasm: Disentangling traits and behaviours. Socioaffective Neuroscience & Psychology, 6(1), 31562. Read summarySabrina: Wlodarski, R., & Dunbar, R. I. M. (2013). Menstrual cycle effects on attitudes to kissing. Human Nature, 24(4), 402-413. Read summaryNatascha: Tracy, J. L., & Beall, A. T. (2014). The impact of weather on women’s tendency to wear red or pink when at high risk for conception. PLoS One, 9(2), e88852. Read summaryAntonia: Krems, J. A., Neel, R., Neuberg, S. L., Puts, D. A., & Kenrick, D. T. (2016). Women selectively guard their (desirable) mates from ovulating women. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 110(4), 551-573. Read summarySamuele: Perrett, D. I., Lee, K. J., Penton-Voak, I. S., Rowland, D. R., Yoshikawa, S., Burt, D. M., et al. (1998). Effects of sexual dimorphism on facial attractiveness. Nature, 394, 884-887. Read summaryJames: Dixson, B. J., & Brooks, R. C. (2013). The role of facial hair in women's perceptions of men's attractiveness, health, masculinity and parenting abilities. Evolution and Human Behavior, 34(3), 236-241. Read summarySebastian: Lefevre, C. E., & Perrett, D. I. (2015). Fruit over sunbed: Carotenoid skin coloration is found more attractive than melanin coloration. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 68(2), 284-293. Read summaryDenise: Kaufman, S. B., Kozbelt, A., Silvia, P., Kaufman, J. C., Ramesh, S., & Feist, G. J. (2016). Who finds Bill Gates sexy? Creative mate preferences as a function of cognitive ability, personality, and creative achievement. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 50(4), 294-307. Read summaryJulia: Apostelou, M., Kasapi, K., & Arakliti, A. (2015). Will they do as we wish? An investigation of the effectiveness of parental manipulation of mating behavior. Evolutionary Psychological Science, 1(1), 28-36. Read summaryTita: DeBruine, L. M., Jones, B. C., & Little, A. C. (2017). Positive sexual imprinting for human eye color. bioRxiv, 135244. Read summary

Can you tell a good leader from their face or their name? We'll look at the results of two new experiments to find out. Plus I talk to Zuzana Štěrbová about her research on how childhood experiences impact our love lives.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! The Face of a LeaderThe faces carved on Mount Rushmore are among the greatest leaders in American history, but did their presidential faces help them to the top? Kurt Magoon/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Barton, D. N., & Halberstadt, J. (in press). A social Bouba/Kiki effect: A bias for people whose names match their faces. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. Read summaryRe, D. E., & Rule, N. (in press). Distinctive facial cues predict leadership rank and selection. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Read summaryŠtěrbová, X., Bartova, K., Weiss, P., & Varella., V. J. (2017). Relationship with parents during childhood predicts age of the first love but not the first sexual experience in heterosexual and non-heterosexual individuals. Poster presented at the conference of the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association, Paris.

Supporters of the podcast on Patreon have chosen the topic for this month's episode, and it's a family affair: we find out if parents prefer attractive partners for their offspring. We will also discover if our partners tend to resemble our siblings (*shudder*). And I speak to Jaime Benjamin, a PhD student at the University of Dundee, about her new research on how men and women trade off appearance against wealth in potential partners.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! How Your Family Influences What You Find AttractiveThe Godfather clan kept it in the family, but do parents interfere in their offsprings' choice of mates? And do our partners resembles our siblings?The articles covered in the show: Benjamin, J., & Moore, F. (2017). Mate preference trade-offs a la carte vs. table d'hôte: Examining sex differences using Conjoint Analysis. Poster presented at the conference of the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association, Paris. Lefevre, C. E., & Saxton, T. K. (in press). Parental preferences for the facial traits of their offspring's partners can enhance parental inclusive fitness. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summarySaxton, T. K., Steel, C., Rowley, K., Newman, A. V., & Baguley, T. (in press). Facial resemblance between women's partners and brothers. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summary

This month we investigate unusual aspects of mating behaviour. How many young adults have experience of threesomes (sex with two partners at the same time)? And why does anyone read -- and write -- sexually explicit fan fiction? I also interview Naomi Muggleton, a PhD student from the University of Warwick, about her research on women's long- and short-term mate preferences and how they vary across cultures. (I've also covered Naomi's previous work on body odour: click here for that episode)Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Harry/Hermione: Who Writes (and Reads) Sexually Explicit Fanfic? Who Wants a Threesome? No, Really. "Wow, that was a bad idea..." Portland Center Stage/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Anisimowicz, Y., & O’Sullivan, L. F. (2017). Men’s and women’s use and creation of online sexually explicit materials including fandom-related works. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 46(3), 823-833. Read summaryMuggleton, N. (2017). Ecological predictors of female sexual suppression. Poster presented at the conference of the European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association, Paris. Thompson, A. E., & Byers, E. S. (2017). Heterosexual young adults’ interest, attitudes, and experiences related to mixed-gender, multi-person sex. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 46(3), 813-822. Read summary

For the first time, I hand over editorial control to you, the listeners of The Psychology of Attractiveness Podcast. Supporters of the podcast on Patreon have chosen what we'll discuss in today's show. Thanks to them, we'll find out why people choose to stay single, and how sex makes men immoral.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Why Does Anyone Stay Single? Femme Fatale: Sexy Women Make Men do Bad Things It wasn’t until dusk that Emma accepted her wedding day hadn’t gone exactly to plan. Bobby Bradley/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Apostolou, M. (2017). Why people stay single: An evolutionary perspective. Personality and Individual Differences, 111, 263-271. Read summaryChiou, W.-B., Wu, W.-H., & Cheng, W. (in press). Sexy women can tempt men down the road of immorality: Exposure to sexy stimuli leads to increased dishonesty in men. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summary

How do mobile phones improve and damage our relationships? We look at a study of sexting among high school students, and find out about 'phubbing': a modern relationship behaviour you have almost certainly experienced.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! How Popular is Sexting? Phubbing and Relationship Satisfaction How do mobile phones improve (and damage) relationships? L'oeil étranger/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Strassberg, D. S., Cann, D., & Velarde, V. (in press). Sexting by high school students. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summary Wang, X., Xie, X., Wang, Y., Wang, P., & Lei, L. (2017). Partner phubbing and depression among married Chinese adults: The roles of relationship satisfaction and relationship length. Personality and Individual Differences, 110, 12-17. Read summary

Some of you may know that last summer I started a new job at Basel University in Switzerland. During the autumn semester, I taught a class on personality and intimate relationships. One thing I had the class do is read research papers and prepare short written assignments on them, in a style similar to my podcast. Several of the students also recorded their assignments, so here is a special bonus episode featuring their work. Almost none of the students are native English speakers, and until now most had summarised research only in formal scientific language, so the project was a real challenge. I am very proud of the effort they put in and hope you enjoy this bonus podcast.Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Basel! Thomas Mulchi/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Michelle: Pawłowski, B., & Jasienska, G. (2008). Women's body morphology and preferences for sexual partners' characteristics. Evolution and Human Behavior, 29(1), 19-25. Read summary Ting: Lill, M. M., & Wilkinson, T. J. (2005). Judging a book by its cover: descriptive survey of patients' preferences for doctors' appearance and mode of address. BMJ, 331(7531), 1524-1527. Read summary Hanna: Maybach, K. L., & Gold, S. R. (1994). Hyperfemininity and attraction to macho and non‐macho men. The Journal of Sex Research, 31(2), 91-98. Read summary Sou Bouy: Nordsletten, A. E., Larsson, H., & Crowley, J. J. (2016). Patterns of nonrandom mating within and across 11 major psychiatric disorders. JAMA Psychiatry, 73(4), 354-361. Read summary Dania: Schützwohl, A., & Koch, S. (2004). Sex differences in jealousy: The recall of cues to sexual and emotional infidelity in personally more and less threatening context conditions. Evolution and Human Behavior, 25(4), 249-257. Read summary Alina and Dominik: Mark, K. P., Janssen, E., & Milhausen, R. R. (2011). Infidelity in heterosexual couples: Demographic, interpersonal, and personality-related predictors of extradyadic sex. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 971-982. Read summary Daphne: Campbell, L., & Kohut, T. (2017). The use and effects of pornography in romantic relationships. Current Opinion in Psychology, 13, 6-10. Read summary Leonie: Cravens, J. D., & Whiting, J. B. (2014). Clinical implications of internet infidelity: Where Facebook fits in. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 42(4), 325-339. Read summary Emily: McDaniel, B. T., Drouin, M., & Cravens, J. D. (2017). Do you have anything to hide? Infidelity-related behaviors on social media sites and marital satisfaction. Computers in Human Behavior, 66, 88-95. Read summary Galya: Meltzer, A. L., & McNulty, J. K. (2016). Who is having more and better sex? The Big Five as predictors of sex in marriage. Journal of Research in Personality, 63, 62-66. Read summary Christine: Ahmetoglu, G., Swami, V., & Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (2010). The relationship between dimensions of love, personality, and relationship length. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39(5), 1181-1190. Read summary Philipp: Barnes, S., Brown, K. W., Krusemark, E., Campbell, W. K., & Rogge, R. D. (2007). The role of mindfulness in romantic relationship satisfaction and responses to relationship stress. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 33(4), 482–500. Read summary Oriana: Jackson, J. J., Connolly, J. J., Garrison, S. M., Leveille, M. M., & Connolly, S. L. (2015). Your friends know how long you will live. Psychological Science, 26(3), 335-340. Read summary Susanne: Mogilski, J. K., & Welling, L. L. M. (in press). Staying friends with an ex: Sex and dark personality traits predict motivations for post-relationship friendship. Personality and Individual Differences. Read summary Cécile: Wilson, R. E., Harris, K., & Vazire, S. (2015). Personality and friendship satisfaction in daily life: Do everyday social interactions account for individual differences in friendship satisfaction? European Journal of Personality, 29(2), 173-186. Read summary Léa: Campbell, K., Holderness, N., & Riggs, M. (2015). Friendship chemistry: An examination of underlying factors. The Social Science Journal, 52(2), 239-247. Read summary

It's a bad boy special. We discover if a spell at an army training camp can change the type of woman a man finds most attractive. We also find out what tattoos say about a man's health, masculinity, and perceived parenting ability.Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Do Tattoos Make a Man Appear Healthier and More Attractive? Army Training Skews Face Preferences Can army training affect what kind of women men are attracted to? And do tattoos make a man seem healthier and hotter? Defence Images/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Batres, C., & Perrett, D. I. (2016). How the harsh environment of an army training camp changes human (Homo sapiens) facial preferences. Ethology. Read summary Galbarczyk, A., & Ziomkiewicz, A. (2017). Tattooed men: Healthy bad boys and good-looking competitors. Personality and Individual Differences, 106. Read summary

In this episode we poke our noses into two new research papers on body odour and attractiveness. Can women tell if another woman is fertile simply by sniffing her armpits? And can we sweeten our natural aroma by eating fragrant food?Download the MP3 Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Something (or Someone) Smells Fishy: Diet and Body OdorDoes a diet rich in fruit and vegetables make a man's sweat smell like a bouquet of flowers? Derek Hatfield/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Gildersleeve, K., Fales, M. R., & Haselton, M. G. (in press). Women's evaluations of other women's natural body odor depend on targets' fertility status. Evolution and Human Behavior. View summaryZuniga, A., Stevenson, R. J., Mahmut, M. K., & Stephen, I. D. (in press). Diet quality and the attractiveness of male body odor. Evolution and Human Behavior. View summary

Download the MP3 Sex and drugs: Does taking illicit substances affect your mating success? We also find out how a dose of testosterone influences what men find attractive.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Support me! Support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 and get access to the patron-only feed, including bonus podcasts and blogs not available elsewhere.Read the transcript! Sex & Drugs: Can Substance Use Enhance Your Love Life? How Testosterone Affects What Men Find Attractive Does taking drugs make you a goddamn sexual tyrannosaurus? Niyantha Shekar/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Richardson, G. B., Chen, C.-C., Dai, C.-L., Swoboda, C. M., Nedelec, J. L., & Chen, W.-W. (in press). Substance use and mating success. Evolution and Human Behavior. View summaryBird, B. M., Welling, L. L. M., Ortiz, T. L., Moreau, B. J. P., Hansen, S., Emond, M., . . . Carré, J. M. (in press). Effects of exogenous testosterone and mating context on men's preferences for female facial femininity. Hormones and Behavior. View summary

In a belated attempt to understand the results of the recent US elections, we harness the power of attractiveness psychology (because polling doesn't seem to work). Do we vote for candidates based on their voices? Is our party political preference linked to our sexual behaviour? We find out in this month's show.Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Conservatives and Liberals: From the Polling Place to the Bedroom Deeper Voiced Politicians Win More Elections Is our preferred political party linked to our sexual behaviour? Theresa Thompson/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Hatemi, P. K., Crabtree, C., & McDermott, R. (2017). The relationship between sexual preferences and political orientations: Do positions in the bedroom affect positions in the ballot box? Personality and Individual Differences, 105, 318-325. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2016.10.008Pavela Banai, I., Banai, B., & Bovan, K. (in press). Vocal characteristics of presidential candidates can predict the outcome of actual elections Evolution and Human Behavior. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2016.10.012

Download the MP3 Does viewing pornography damage your relationship? In this episode we look at two recent research studies that seek to answer this question using very different methods. Also, does Trump’s red “power tie” really make him appear more dominant?Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Porn: Does it Damage your Relationship? Trump’s Powerless Red “Power Tie” Does viewing pornography have adverse effects on your relationship? Caden Crawford/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Kohut, T., Fisher, W. A., & Campbell, L. (in press). Perceived effects of pornography on the couple relationship: Initial findings of open-ended, participant-informed, “bottom-up” research. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 1-18. View summaryKramer, R. S. S. (2016). The red power(less) tie: Perceptions of political leaders wearing red. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(2). View summaryPerry, S. L. (in press). Does viewing pornography reduce marital quality over time? Evidence from longitudinal data. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 1-11. View summary

Download the MP3 Men are more attractive if they are intelligent, but what do smarts do for feminine appeal? We also find out whether physically attractive women are more interested in short-term flings or serious long-term relationships.Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Are Men Attracted to Clever Women? Are Attractive Women More Interested in Flings? Are smarter women more attractive? Nottingham Trent University/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Karbowski, A., Deja, D., & Zawisza, M. (2016). Perceived female intelligence as economic bad in partner choice. Personality and Individual Differences, 102, 217-222. View summaryFisher, C. I., Hahn, A. C., DeBruine, L. M., & Jones, B. C. (2016). Is women's sociosexual orientation related to their physical attractiveness? Personality and Individual Differences, 101, 396-399. View summary

Download the MP3 Do opposites attract? We look at two studies of couples who are different in some way. Are couple who don't match in attractiveness less trusting of another? And do couples who have different body shapes attract prejudice and discrimination?Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! “Date Someone Your own Size” ♪ When You’re in Love With a Beautiful Woman (or Handsome Man)… ♫ Is your partner bigger or smaller than you, and what does this mean for your relationship? bingham30069/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Collisson, B., Howell, J. L., Rusbasan, D., & Rosenfeld, E. (in press). “Date someone your own size”: Prejudice and discrimination toward mixed-weight relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summaryOltmanns, J. R., Markey, P. M., & French, J. E. (in press). Dissimilarity in physical attractiveness within romantic dyads and mate retention behaviors. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summaryJust after I posted this episode, I read about this new study by Sela and colleagues which was also really interesting: it's like the Oltmanns' mate retention study except with self-ratings of attractiveness.

Download the MP3 Something more than friends. We look at three new studies on attraction to opposite-sex friends. How do men and women differ in their attraction to friends? And can you make a friend fall in love with you by falling in love with them first?Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Why are we Attracted to Friends?What a sickeningly cheerful bunch of friends. No doubt they are having lots of sex with each other, and we can only hope that the group will soon implode in a spiral of jealousy.Miguel Angel/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Bleske-Rechek, A., Joseph, W. E., Williquette, H., & Donovan, B. (in press). Sex differences in young adults' attraction to opposite-sex friends: Natural sampling versus mental concepts. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read paperLemay Jr., E. P., & Wolf, N. R. (2016). Projection of romantic and sexual desire in opposite-sex friendships: How wishful thinking creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 42(7), 864-878. Read summaryMogilski, J. K. & L. L. M. Welling (in press). Staying friends with an ex: Sex and dark personality traits predict motivations for post-relationship friendship. Personality and Individual Differences. Read summary

In this episode, how do our genitals affect the psychology of attraction and sex? We look at new research on female genital mutilation and its effects on women's sexuality, and find out whether a woman is more likely to experience an orgasm if her man has a longer than average penis. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Do Women Have More Orgasms if their Sex Partner has a Longer than Average Penis? Does FGM Make Women Less Interested in Sex? Watch out, mate. You’ll have someone’s eye out. Enrique Lin/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Booksmythe, I., Head, M. L., Keogh, J. S., & Jennions, M. D. (in press). Fitness consequences of artificial selection on relative male genital size. Nature Communications, 7, 11597. Read summaryDrasa Jr., K. M., & Vasili, V. (2016). Which female prefer longer penises? International Journal of Science and Research, 5(5), 108-111.Onyishi, I. E., Prokop, P., Okafor, C. O., & Pham, M. N. (2016). Female genital cutting restricts sociosexuality among the Igbo people of Southeast Nigeria. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(2). Read summary

We discover why beauty is in the nose of the beholder in this odor special. We'll find out whether spraying scented deodorant all over your body can make your smell more masculine or feminine, and we'll also learn if a man's whole mating psychology is turned topsy turvy when he catches a whiff of female pheromones.Also, this is episode 100 of the podcast so if you want to send me lots of gifts then go right ahead. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Perfume and Pheromones: Why Beauty is in the Nose of the BeholderScents -- whether natural or artificial -- can influence what we find attractive and even how we see ourselves. J. Sibiga/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Allen, C., Cobey, K. D., Havlíček, J., & Roberts, S. C. (in press). The impact of artificial fragrances on the assessment of mate quality cues in body odor. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summaryWilliams, M. N., & Jacobson, A. (2016). Effect of copulins on rating of female attractiveness, mate-guarding, and self-perceived sexual desirability. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(2). Read summary

Fertility and fairness: We look at how the menstrual cycle influences women's sharing behaviour, and find out why your hormones (and the hormones of other women) have an impact on what you feel is fair. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Fertility and FairnessNew research suggests that, when women are most fertile, they demand more from their exchanges with other women. Dwayne Bent/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Eisenbruch, A. B., & Roney, J. R. (2016). Conception risk and the ultimatum game: When fertility is high, women demand more. Personality and Individual Differences, 98, 272-274. Read summaryNecka, E. A., Puts, D. A., Dimitroff, S. J., & Norman, G. J. (in press). Other women’s fertility moderates female resource distribution across the menstrual cycle. Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summary

Are you sick of how you smell? We investigate the link between susceptibility to disease and attraction to the body odour of others and ourselves. Also, how do women choose to wear red clothes? Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Sick of How You Smell? Put on That Red Dress? Our natural perfume can attract, or repel, potential mates: and sometimes ourselves! wackystuff/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Muggleton, N. K., & Fincher, C. L. (in press). The effects of disease vulnerability on preferences for self-similar scent. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read paperNiesta Kayser, D., Agthe, M., & Maner, J. K. (2016). Strategic sexual signals: Women's display versus avoidance of the color red depends on the attractiveness of an anticipated interaction partner. PLoS One, 11(3), e0148501. Read paper

The perils of dating your boss: do workplace romances have a positive or negative effect on your job prospects? And predicting the sex of your child: do women who prefer a certain type of man think they're more likely to give birth to boys or girls? Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! It’s a Boy! Women Who Want a Son are More Attracted to Dominant Men The Perils of Dating Your Boss I don't think donning a giant shower cap is going to attract anyone, but OK... Gwendal Uguen/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Chan-Serafin, S., Teo, L., Minbashian, A., Cheng, D., & Wang, L. (in press). The perils of dating your boss: The role of hierarchical workplace romance and sex on evaluators’ career advancement decisions for lower status romance participants. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. Read summaryPalmer-Hague, J. L., & Watson, N. V. (2016). Predicted offspring sex is related to women’s preferences for dominance in men. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, 10(1), 10-28. Read summary

Let's take a walk on the wild side as we discover how a preference for macho men might be related to where we like to take an evening stroll. We'll also find out why sisters agree—and disagree—over what constitutes an attractive partner. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Fear of Crime and the Allure of Bad Boys Sisters Choosing Him For Themselves Women may prefer dominant men because they make good bodyguards. Warner Bros EntertainmentThe articles covered in the show: Ryder, H., Maltby, J., Rai, L., Jones, P., & Flowe, H. D. (in press). Women's fear of crime and preference for formidable mates: How specific are the underlying psychological mechanisms? Evolution and Human Behavior. Read summaryBiegler, R., & Kennair, L. E. O. (2016). Sisterly love: Within-generation differences in ideal partner for sister and self. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, 10(1), 29-42. Read summary

What women want: we investigate whether women's preference for taller men leads to a lifetime of happiness, and find out if it's more important for a man to be generous than handsome. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Altruistic Vs Handsome: Which Makes a Man More Attractive? Does a Taller Husband Make for a Happier Wife? "Oh, FJ-2547, you really shouldn't have!" Is it more important for a man to be generous than handsome? Kristina Alexanderson / FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Farrelly, D., Clemson, P., & Guthrie, M. (2016). Are women’s mate preferences for altruism also influenced by physical attractiveness? Evolutionary Psychology, 14(1). Read summarySohn, K. (2016). Does a taller husband make his wife happier? Personality and Individual Differences, 91, 14-21. Read summary

I recently attended the Galton Institute's conference on mate choice, and was lucky to grab an interview with Prof. Melinda Mills, head of The University of Oxford's Department of Sociology. We spoke about Melinda's research on ethnicity and internet dating, why attitudes to migration shape who we are willing to date, and discussed some of the difficulties inherent in studying dating preferences on the web. I also talk about some new research on selfies and who takes them. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Who Takes Selfies? Men and women post a similar number of ‘relfies’ to social media. Roberto Trombetta/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Potârcă, G., & Mills, M. (2015). Racial preferences in online dating across European countries. European Sociological Review, 31(3), 326-341. Read summarySorakowska, A., Oleszkiewicz, A., Frackowiak, T., Pisanski, K., Chmiel, A., & Sorokowski, P. (2016). Selfies and personality: Who posts self-portrait photographs? Personality and Individual Differences, 90, 119-123. Read summary

Masculine masks: what a bushy beard says about a man's attitudes to women, and why a hit of the male hormone testosterone could have you reaching for your make up bag. Download the MP3 NOTE (8th Feb 2016): The scientists behind the testosterone and make up research have voluntarily retracted their paper. For more information, visit Retraction Watch. Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Feeling Hormonal? Slap on the Makeup Are Bearded Men More Sexist? Eurovision winner, Conchita Wurst. Pretty much the perfect image for a podcast about beards and make up. Alexander Gotter/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Fisher, C. I., Hahn, A. C., DeBruine, L. M., & Jones, B. C. (in press). Women’s preference for attractive makeup tracks changes in their salivary testosterone. Psychological Science. Read summaryOldmeadow, J. A., & Dixson, B. J. (in press). The association between men’s sexist attitudes and facial hair. Archives of Sexual Behavior. Read summary

Checking in? I talk to Dasa Fabjan about how the attractiveness of hotel guests can influence the service they receive. We'll also find out why the size of your Christmas bonus might be linked to your appearance. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Paid and Pretty Hotel receptionists are often asked to project an attractive appearance, but do they also pay attention to the appearance of their customers? Linford Butler/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Fruhen, L. S., Watkins, C. D., & Jones, B. C. (in press). Perceptions of facial dominance, trustworthiness and attractiveness predict managerial pay awards in experimental tasks. The Leadership Quarterly. Read summaryKnežević, M., Tomka, D., Bizjak, B., Fabjan, D., & Kukulj, S. (2015). The physical appearance of hotel guests: The impact on service providers’ communication and quality of service. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 51, 8-14. Read summary

Diet and desire: Why you and your partner shouldn't turn your nose up at garlic, and how men get greedy when there's a woman in the room. Also, since it's #AntiBullyingWeek, we also find out why bullying may be a mating tactic. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Another Slice of Pizza, Darling? Eating Garlic Combats Body Odor! Do Bullies Want Love, Not War? Men eat more pizza when in the company of women. Louise Ma / WNYCThe articles covered in the show: Fialová, J., Roberts, S. C., & Havlíček, J. (in press). Consumption of garlic positively affects hedonic perception of axillary body odour. Appetite. Read summaryKniffin, K. M., Sigirci, O., & Wansink, B. (in press). Eating heavily: Men eat more in the company of women. Evolutionary Psychological Science. Read summaryVolk, A. A., Dane, A. V., Marini, Z. A., & Vaillancourt, T. (in press). Adolescent bullying, dating, and mating: Testing an evolutionary hypothesis. Evolutionary Psychology. Read summary

Turn that frown upside down! We look at research on attraction and humor. Does a GSOH make you more desirable? And Matia Okubo reveals why a man who cracks a smile is good marriage material. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Read the transcript! Is a GSOH attractive? Psychologists from Japan have found that men are more attractive when they smile, but only for long-term relationships. Luca [JP@G]/FlickrThe articles covered in the show: Okubo, M., Ishikawa, K., Kobayashi, A., Laeng, B., & Tommasi, L. (2015). Cool guys and warm husbands: The effect of smiling on male facial attractiveness for short- and long-term relationships. Evolutionary Psychology, 13(3). Read paperTornquist, M., & Chiappe, D. (2015). Effects of humor production, humor receptivity, and physical attractiveness on partner desirability. Evolutionary Psychology, 13(4), 1474704915608744. Read paper

Head posture: Does tilting your noggin like a bobble-head doll make you more or less alluring? I talk to Danielle Sulikowski. Download the MP3 Rate me! Rate, review, or listen in iTunes or in Stitcher. Does tilting her head make this woman more attractive? Or does she just look like her bonce is about to snap off at the hinge?The articles covered in the show: Burke, D., & Sulikowski, D. (2010). A new viewpoint on the evolution of sexually dimorphic human faces. Evolutionary Psychology, 8(4), 147470491000800404. Read summarySulikowski, D., Burke, D., Havlíček, J., & Roberts, S. C. (in press). Head tilt and fertility contribute to different aspects of female facial attractiveness. Ethology. Read summary