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Exploring the relationship between attractiveness and a good sense of humour
Abstract
Much research has shown the importance of physical attractiveness and a good sense of humour when choosing a mate. Evidence has shown that aspects of our appearance, such as symmetry or sex hormone markers, can be a sign of good health and fertility to potential mates, therefore it is highly adaptive to recognise these cues. It is however less clear what a good sense of humour communicates to others and why it is so important and attractive in potential partners. Some researchers have suggested that humour signals ‘good genes’, similar to the function of physical attractiveness, thus demonstrating how funny you are may increase how attractive others find you. However, other researchers suggest that we use humour to ‘indicate interest’ in individuals we are attracted to, meaning that physical attractiveness may enhance perceptions of funniness. In this chapter, we present evidence to suggest that physical attractiveness enhances the perceptions of funniness in men, but not in women, adding further evidence to the literature showing the sex differences which exist in humour appreciation and production. An additional consideration, however, is that the humour used by men and women may not be perceived the same way and that the humour style used may impact on the attractiveness of the individual using it. Certain humour styles may be considered less socially desirable than others.For example, aggressive humour is less socially desirable than affiliative humour. Despite this, evidence has shown that whilst affiliative humour is preferred for long-term relationships, aggressive humour is attractive for short-term relationships. This finding highlights humour as a means to communicate other important qualities in a potential mate, such as dominance, cooperativeness, or proceptivity. The relative attractiveness of these qualities to men and women may help us to understand how the attractiveness of humour varies according to context, style, and the sex of the user.
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A good sense of humour is commonly offered in written dating advertisements demonstrating
that humour is an important quality to have when attracting a mate, but not all humour is
the same. This study used vignettes in the style of a personal advertisement to measure the attractiveness
of affiliative and aggressive humour in different relationship contexts. The results demonstrated
that affiliative humour was more attractive than aggressive humour in both relationship
contexts but especially for long-term relationships. The results follow the pattern expected of affiliative
humour styles being more attractive for long-term relationships due to being linked to
qualities that may be important in long-term relationships such as likelihood of cooperation, and
aggressive humour styles not being favoured for long-term relationships due to being linked to
qualities that may be detrimental in long-term relationships. A follow-up study confirmed that different
humour styles were associated with different perceived personality traits. Together these
findings suggest that humour may be used to indicate an individual’s personality and that the attractiveness
of a good sense of humour depends on both the type of humour and the type of relationship
being sought.
We propose that intentionally produced humor is a form of communication that evolved to broadcast information about the self and to obtain information about others by hon- estly signaling the fact of shared common knowledge. According to this model, humorous utter- ances and acts are encrypted in the sense that what makes the joke funny is not merely its surface content, but a relationship between the surface content and one or more unstated implicatures which are known by both the sender and the receiver. It is the non-random nature of the match between this unstated knowledge and the surface content which provides evidence that the pro- ducer possesses that knowledge, and that those who appreciate the joke do as well, thus rendering humor a means of assessing shared underlying knowledge, attitudes, and preferences. We present evidence from two experimental studies of humor evaluation in support of the encryption theory.
Humor is a complex cognitive function which often leads to laughter. Contemporary humor theorists have begun to formulate hypotheses outlining the possible innate cognitive structures underlying humor. Humor's conspicuous presence in the behavioral repertoire of humankind invites adaptive explanations. This article explores the possible adaptive features of humor and ponders its evolutionary path through hominid history. Current humor theories and previous evolutionary ideas on humor are reviewed. In addition, scientific fields germane to the evolutionary study of humor are examined: animal models, genetics, children's humor, humor in pathological conditions, neurobiology, humor in traditional societies and cognitive archeology. Candidate selection pressures and associated evolutionary mechanisms are considered. The authors conclude that several evolutionary-related topics such as the origins of language, cognition underlying spiritual feelings, hominid group size, and primate teasing could have special relevance to the origins of humor.
Runaway social selection resulting from partner choice may have shaped aspects of human cooperation and complex sociality that are otherwise hard to account for. Social selection is the subtype of natural selection that results from the social behaviors of other individuals. Competition to be chosen as a social partner can, like competition to be chosen as a mate, result in runaway selection that shapes extreme traits. People prefer partners who display valuable resources and bestow them selectively on close partners. The resulting phenotypic covariance between displays and preferences gives fitness advantages to both, creating runaway selection that could shape a whole suite of prosocial traits including altruism, moral capacities, empathy, and theory of mind. Even though they give a net fitness benefit, traits at the endpoint of runaway social selection can have substantial deleterious effects on other traits such as viability, ability to accumulate resources, or vulnerability to mental disorders. Social selection forces arising from self-interested partner choices may be an invisible hand that shaped capacities for commitment, altruism, and other prosocial capacities of the human social brain.
Objective:
The provision of information appears to be an important feature of humor. The present studies examined whether humor serves as an interpersonal signal such that an individual's style of humor is associated with how the individual is perceived by others.
Method:
We examined this issue across two studies. In Study 1, undergraduate participants (257 targets) were rated more positively by their friends and family members (1194 perceivers) when they possessed more benign humor styles. In Study 2, 1190 community participants rated the romantic desirability of targets ostensibly possessing different humor styles.
Results:
Across both studies, our results were consistent with the possibility that humor serves as a signal. More specifically, individuals with benign humor styles (affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles) were evaluated more positively than those targets with injurious humor styles (aggressive and self-defeating humor styles).
Conclusion:
These findings are discussed in terms of the role that humor may play in interpersonal perception and relationships.
Describes the development of the Situational Humor Response Questionnaire (SHRQ) and reports a reliability study with 497 undergraduates and 3 validity studies with 125 undergraduates. Reliability coefficients were in the 70's, and significant correlations were found between the SHRQ and a number of criteria, including mirth responses during an interview, peer ratings of Ss' sense of humor, a measure of positive mood, and rated wittiness of impromptu comedy monologs. The SHRQ is included. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Hypothesized that 1 of the functions of humor is its role in providing a means of communication between individuals. 60 male undergraduates were given cartoons to rate by an attractive female E. It was hypothesized that where possible, Ss would use appreciation of sexual humor as a means of communicating sexual interest in the female E. Since motivation arousal has also been reported to affect humor preferences, a 2 * 2 design was employed to permit independent evaluation of the arousal variable and the communication variable. Both independent variables were found to be effective, with communication the more potent 1. (18 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Drawing upon ten years of research into the most common—yet complex and often puzzling—human behavior. Dr. R. Provine, the world's leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates various aspects of laughter: (1) its evolution; (2) its role in social relationships; (3) its contagiousness; (4) its neural mechanisms; and (5) its health benefits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Drawing on E. Goffman's concepts of face and strategic interaction, the authors define a tease as a playful provocation in which one person comments on something relevant to the target. This approach encompasses the diverse behaviors labeled teasing, clarifies previous ambiguities, differentiates teasing from related practices, and suggests how teasing can lead to hostile or affiliative outcomes. The authors then integrate studies of the content of teasing. Studies indicate that norm violations and conflict prompt teasing. With development, children tease in playful ways, particularly around the ages of 11 and 12 years, and understand and enjoy teasing more. Finally, consistent with hypotheses concerning contextual variation in face concerns, teasing is more frequent and hostile when initiated by high-status and familiar others and men, although gender differences are smaller than assumed. The authors conclude by discussing how teasing varies according to individual differences and culture.
Previous research has led to a widely accepted conclusion that heterosexual women prefer mates who are high in dominance. Three experiments designed to distinguish dominance from prestige and examine moderating contextual factors challenge this conclusion. College women at 2 U.S. universities evaluated hypothetical, potential mates described in written vignettes. Participants in Study 1 preferred a high-prestige to a high-dominance target. With dominance and prestige manipulated independently in Study 2, participants preferred high to low prestige but also preferred low to high dominance. Participants in Study 3 preferred high to low dominance, but only (a) when displayed in the context of an athletic competition and (b) in ratings of attractiveness and desirability as a short-term (vs. long-term) mate.
Women’s preferences for facial structure vary over the menstrual cycle. Little is known, however, as to how preferences for
behavior may be influenced by hormonal factors. Here, we demonstrate that social properties of facial motion influence attractiveness
judgments in the absence of other cues, and that women’s preferences for these displays vary over the menstrual cycle, as
has been demonstrated for structural traits of men’s faces in static stimuli. We produced shape-standardized facial models
that were animated with male movement and assessed for flirtatiousness by 16 women and attractiveness by 47 women. In fertile
phases of the menstrual cycle, women showed stronger preferences for flirtatious movement, but not for absolute movement.
These data show that women (1) recognize specific mating-relevant social cues in male facial movement and (2) are differentially
influenced by these cues at different phases of the menstrual cycle. This preference for flirtatiousness may promote the adaptive
allocation of mating effort towards men who are, in turn, likely to respond positively.
KeywordsFacial attractiveness-Facial movement-Dynamic stimuli-Mate choice-Menstrual cycle-Flirting
Male provisioning ability may have evolved as a “good dad” indicator through sexual selection, whereas male creativity may
have evolved partly as a “good genes” indicator. If so, women near peak fertility (midcycle) should prefer creativity over
wealth, especially in short-term mating. Forty-one normally cycling women read vignettes describing creative but poor men
vs. uncreative but rich men. Women’s estimated fertility predicted their short-term (but not long-term) preference for creativity
over wealth, in both their desirability ratings of individual men (r=.40, p<.01) and their forced-choice decisions between men (r=.46, p<.01). These preliminary results are consistent with the view that creativity evolved at least partly as a good genes indicator
through mate choice.
Several lines of research illustrate that humor plays a pivotal role in relationship initiation. The current article applies sexual selection theory to argue that humor production is a fitness indicator, allowing men to transmit information tacitly about their underlying qualities. And whereas prior research has emphasized women's appreciation of humor as a signal of interest, the focus here is on how women evaluate prospective suitors' humorous offerings. Two studies, including an ecologically valid study of online dating advertisements, provided evidence for men's production and women's evaluation of humor in romantic contexts. A third study revealed that women's evaluations of potential mates' humor are predictive of their romantic interest. Moreover, this article shows that preferences for and perceptions of humor are associated with preferences for and perceptions of intelligence and warmth, consistent with the argument that one function of humor is as a fitness indicator that provides information about underlying mate quality.
In three studies, a General Factor of Personality (GFP) was found to occupy the apex of the hierarchical structure. In Study 1, a GFP emerged independent of method variance and accounted for 54% of the reliable variance in a multitrait-multimethod assessment of 391 Italian high school students that used self-, teacher-, and parent-ratings on the Big Five Questionnaire - Children. In Study 2, a GFP was found in the seven dimensions of Cloninger's Temperament and Character Inventory as well as the Big Five of the NEO PI-R, with the GFPtci correlating r = .72 with the GFPneo. These results indicate that the GFP is practically the same in both test batteries, and its existence does not depend on being extracted using the Big Five model. The GFP accounted for 22% of the total variance in these trait measures, which were assessed in 651 pairs of 14- to 30-year-old Japanese twins. In Study 3, a GFP accounted for 32% of the total variance in nine scales derived from the NEO PI-R, the Humor Styles Questionnaire, and the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire assessed in 386 pairs of 18- to 74-year-old Canadian and U.S. twins. The GFP was found to be 50% heritable with high scores indicating openness, conscientiousness, sociability, agreeableness, emotional stability, good humor and emotional intelligence. The possible evolutionary origins of the GFP are discussed.
Individual differences in willingness to engage in uncommitted sexual relations were investigated in 6 studies. In Study 1, a 5-item Sociosexual Orientation Inventory (SOI) was developed. Studies 2, 3, and 4 provided convergent validity evidence for the SOI, revealing that persons who have an unrestricted sociosexual orientation tend to (a) engage in sex at an earlier point in their relationships, (b) engage in sex with more than 1 partner at a time, and (c) be involved in relationships characterized by less investment, commitment, love, and dependency. Study 5 provided discriminant validity for the SOI, revealing that it does not covary appreciably with a good marker of sex drive. Study 6 demonstrated that the SOI correlates negligibly with measures of sexual satisfaction, anxiety, and guilt. The possible stability of, origins of, and motivational bases underlying individual differences in sociosexuality are discussed.
Laughter facilitates the adaptive response to stress by increasing the psychological distance from distress and by enhancing social relations. To test these hypotheses, the authors related measures of bereaved adults' laughter and smiling 6 months postloss to measures of their (a) subjective emotion and dissociation from distress, (b) social relations, and (c) responses they evoked in others. Duchenne laughter, which involves orbicularis oculi muscle action, related to self-reports of reduced anger and increased enjoyment, the dissociation of distress, better social relations, and positive responses from strangers, whereas non-Duchenne laughter did not. Lending credence to speculations in the ethological literature, Duchenne laughter correlated with different intrapersonal and interpersonal responses than Duchenne smiles. Discussion focuses on the relevance of these findings to theories of positive emotion.
All published research examining effects of humor and laughter on physical health is reviewed. Potential causal mechanisms and methodological issues are discussed. Laboratory experiments have shown some effects of exposure to comedy on several components of immunity, although the findings are inconsistent and most of the studies have methodological problems. There is also some evidence of analgesic effects of exposure to comedy, although similar findings are obtained with negative emotions. Few significant correlations have been found between trait measures of humor and immunity, pain tolerance, or self-reported illness symptoms. There is also little evidence of stress-moderating effects of humor on physical health variables and no evidence of increased longevity with greater humor. More rigorous and theoretically informed research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn about possible health benefits of humor and laughter.
A number of recent hypotheses have attempted to explain the ultimate evolutionary origins of laughter and humor. However most of these have lacked breadth in their evolutionary frameworks while neglecting the empirical existence of two distinct types of laughter--Duchenne and non-Duchenne--and the implications of this distinction for the evolution of laughter as a signal. Most of these hypotheses have also been proposed in relative isolation of each other and remain disjointed from the relevant empirical literature. Here we attempt to remedy these shortcomings through a synthesis of previous laughter and humor research followed by (i) a reevaluation of this research in light of theory and data from several relevant disciplines, and (ii) the proposal of a synthetic evolutionary framework that takes into account phylogeny and history as well as proximate mechanisms and adaptive significance. We consider laughter to have been a preadaptation that was gradually elaborated and co-opted through both biological and cultural evolution. We hypothesize that Duchenne laughter became fully ritualized in early hominids between 4 and 2 mya as a medium for playful emotional contagion. This mechanism would have coupled the emotions of small hominid groups and promoted resource-building social play during the fleeting periods of safety and satiation that characterized early bipedal life. We further postulate that a generalized class of nonserious social incongruity would have been a reliable indicator of such safe times and thereby came to be a potent distal elicitor of laughter and playful emotion. This class of stimuli had its origins in primate social play and was the foundation for formal human humor. Within this framework, Duchenne laughter and protohumor were well established in the hominid biobehavioral repertoire when more cognitively sophisticated traits evolved in the hominid line between 2 mya and the present. The prior existence of laughter and humor allowed them to be co-opted for numerous novel functions, and it is from this process that non-Duchenne laughter and the "dark side" of laughter emerged. This perspective organizes the diversified forms and functions that characterize laughter and humor today and clarifies when and how laughter and humor evolved during the course of human evolution.
Recent studies suggest that laughter plays an important role in social bonding. Human communities are much larger than those of other primates and hence require more time to be devoted to social maintenance activities. Yet, there is an upper limit on the amount of time that can be dedicated to social demands, and, in nonhuman primates, this sets an upper limit on social group size. It has been suggested that laughter provides the additional bonding capacity in humans by allowing an increase in the size of the “grooming group.” In this study of freely forming laughter groups, we show that laughter allows a threefold increase in the number of bonds that can be “groomed” at the same time. This would enable a very significant increase in the size of community that could be bonded.
The “good genes” explanation of attractiveness posits that mate preferences favour healthy individuals due to direct and indirect benefits associated with the selection of a healthy mate. Consequently, attractiveness judgements are likely to reflect judgements of apparent health. One physical characteristic that may inform health judgements is fluctuating asymmetry as it may act as a visual marker for genetic quality and developmental stability. Consistent with these suggestions, a number of studies have found relationships between facial symmetry and facial attractiveness. In Study 1, the interplay between facial symmetry, attractiveness, and judgements of apparent health was explored within a partial correlation design. Findings suggest that the attractiveness–symmetry relationship is mediated by a link between judgements of apparent health and facial symmetry. In Study 2, an opposite-sex bias in sensitivity to facial symmetry was observed when judging health. Thus, perceptual analysis of symmetry may be an adaptation facilitating discrimination between potential mates on the basis of apparent health. The findings of both studies are consistent with a “good genes” explanation of the attractiveness–symmetry relationship and problematic for the claim that symmetry is attractive as a by-product of the ease with which the visual recognition system processes symmetric stimuli.
This study systematically examines the relations between the folk concept of ''sense of humor'' and the behavioral domain of everyday humorous conduct. Participants completed our Humorous Behavior e-sort Deck (HBQD) and a set of self-ratings contributing to an overall sense of humor index as well as personality measures including the California Psychological Inventory and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Our analyses revealed that overall sense of humor subsumed only a delimited and specific set of humor-related behaviors, in particular, socially constructive and competent forms of humorous conduct within interpersonal contexts. Results with the HBQD further indicated that overall sense of humor was positively associated with only two dimensions of humorous conduct (Socially Warm Versus Cold humorous style and Competent versus Inept humorous style) and unrelated to three others (Reflective versus Boorish, Earthy versus Repressed and Benign versus Mean-spirited humorous styles). Sense of humor was also found to be linked to socially desirable behaviors, but only those behaviors associated with social warmth and competence and not the entire range of socially desirable forms of humor. Analysis of the concept of ''sense of humor'' among subsamples of extraverts and introverts also revealed that although socially constructive uses of humor were important for both psychological types, humor competence figured more prominently in the introverts' notion of sense of humor. General personality characteristics were only minimally related to overall sense of humor, but revealed substantial and differentiated correlates to the styles of humorous conduct isolated by the HBQD. Overall, our findings argue strongly for a comprehensive approach to the assessment of individuals' understanding of humor and their styles of everyday humorous conduct.
In this study the most important theories of evolutionary approaches to humor and laughter are considered. Some aspects of humor can be interpreted as a product of natural selection for survival. Other features of humor could have evolved through sexual selection, and may function as courtship tools in the mating process. An attempt has been made to set up specific and testable hypotheses concerning the role of humor in the context of short-term and long-term relationships and the differences between sexes in this respect.
There is evidence to suggest that humour is an important part of mate choice and that humour may serve as an indicator of genetic quality. The current study investigated how rated funniness from a video clip was related to an individual’s attractiveness as a short-term or long-term partner. We additionally tested for the presence of an attractiveness halo effect on humour ratings by comparing ratings of funniness from video clips, audio-only presentations, and photographs. We found that funniness was most strongly correlated with attractiveness for short-term relationships, especially in videos of males. We also found that attractiveness was related to funniness ratings differently across video, audio-only clips, and photographs. Relative to their rated funniness in the audio-only condition, with no appearance cues, attractive individuals were rated as funnier in video clips than less attractive individuals. An additional study demonstrated that ratings of flirtatiousness and funniness were strongly correlated. Perceived similarity between producing humour and flirting may explain why humour is more preferable in a short-term partner as flirting may be seen to signal proceptivity. The effects of attractiveness on humour judgement may also be explained by an association with flirtation as flirting may be most enjoyable when directed by attractive individuals.
Symmetry may act as a marker of phenotypic and genetic quality and is preferred during mate selection in a variety of species. Measures of human body symmetry correlate with attractiveness, but studies manipulating human face images report a preference for asymmetry. These results may reflect unnatural feature shapes and changes in skin textures introduced by image processing. When the shape of facial features is varied (with skin textures held constant), increasing symmetry of face shape increases ratings of attractiveness for both male and female faces. These findings imply facial symmetry may have a positive impact on mate selection in humans.
This study examined the effects of expressions of humor and physical attractiveness on desire for future interaction in various types of heterosexual relationships. Humor was manipulated using interview transcripts containing humorous self-deprecating responses: physical attractiveness was manipulated using photographs. Men were found to emphasize physical attractiveness more than did women for dating, sexual intercourse, and a serious relationship. Consistent with the Social Transformation Model of Humor introduced in this article, individuals, particularly men, expressing humor were rated as more desirable than nonhumorous individuals for a serious relationship and marriage, but only when these individuals were physically attractive. Humorous individuals were perceived to be more cheerful but less intellectual than nonhumorous individuals. The Social Transformation Model appears to be a valuable way of looking at the interaction of humor and physical attractiveness. Directions for future research based on this model are discussed.
Women prefer dominant men as short-term mates and prestigious men as long-term mates. People associate short-term mating with masculine male facial features and long-term mating with feminine male facial features. The present study found that people associate dominant men with masculine facial features and short-term mating strategies, and prestigious men with feminine facial features and long-term mating strategies. Both men and women prefer high-prestige men for social relationships. Women prefer high-prestige men for long-term romantic relationships, yet prefer high-dominance men for brief sexual affairs. Although men were generally accurate in predicting women’s partner preferences, men overestimated the degree to which women would find the high-dominance man more attractive for all types of relationships.
Women's mate choice criteria were examined experimentally in the contexts of long-term and extra-pair mateship scenarios. In long-term mateships, women may benefit by pairing with males who provide material resources and assistance in child rearing. In contrast, in extra-pair mateships, women may benefit in other ways, with such benefits outweighing the potential costs imposed by a primary mate who discovers the relationship. One benefit, or evolutionary function, of extra-pair mateships may be to replace a primary mate, in which case mate preferences should look similar across long-term and extra-pair contexts. However, another function of extra-pair mateships may be to obtain high quality gametes (Le., “good genes”), in which case women should be differentially attracted to cues of heritable phenotypic quality, such as physical attractiveness. By using detailed verbal and pictorial descriptions of men and requiring participants to trade off physical attractiveness for good character (i.e., being a good cooperator and parent), it was possible to determine whether women's criteria for partners varied across experimental contexts. Findings suggest that extra-pair mateships may have served the evolutionary function of obtaining “good genes,” because attractiveness was more important in extra-pair mateships to the detriment of good character. This effect was maintained even when characteristics of the female participants (age, parity, marital experience) were covaried. In addition, the preference for physical attractiveness was specific to the sexual context; it did not generalize, in a second experiment, to choices among short-term male coworkers.
Guided by Relational Framing and Parental Investment Theories, this investigation examined experimentally induced flirtatious
interactions. United States undergraduates (N = 252) from the Mid-Atlantic region viewed a flirtatious interaction and rated a confederate on physical and social attraction,
affiliation, dominance, and conversational effectiveness. Generally, it was hypothesized that different flirting motivations
would lead to different evaluations of the flirters, and perceptions of flirters would vary based on gender. Results revealed
that men were evaluated as more dominant and affiliative than women when flirting, but dominance in men was not perceived
as attractive or conversationally effective. In addition, men’s attraction to women increased significantly when women flirted
for sexual motives, and women’s attraction to men decreased significantly when men flirted for fun. Overall, the results provide
mixed support for both theories.
KeywordsFlirting–Parental Investment Theory–Relational Framing Theory–Attraction–Conversational effectiveness
Describes the development and initial validation of the Humor Styles Questionnaire, which assesses four dimensions relating to individual differences in uses of humor. These are: relatively benign uses of humor to enhance the self (Self-enhancing) and to enhance one’s relationships with others (Affiliative), use of humor to enhance the self at the expense of others (Aggressive), and use of humor to enhance relationships at the expense of self (Self-defeating). Validation data indicate that the four scales differentially relate in predicted ways to peer ratings of humor styles and to measures of mood (cheerfulness, depression, anxiety, hostility), self-esteem, optimism, well-being, intimacy, and social support. They also relate to all five dimensions of the Five Factor Model and to Agency and Communion. The first two scales overlap with previous humor tests, whereas the Aggressive and Self-defeating humor scales largely tap different dimensions. Males scored higher than females on Aggressive and Self-defeating humor. It is expected that the HSQ will be useful for research on humor and psychological well-being by assessing forms of humor that may be deleterious to health as well as those that are beneficial.
Deviations from perfect symmetry in paired traits of otherwise bilateral symmetrical organisms are thought to reflect developmental quality, especially the ability to resist environmental perturbations early in ontogeny. It is well established that poor environmental conditions increase developmental instability (DI) as reflected by measurements of fluctuating asymmetry. In humans, there is evidence that DI relates to numerous fitness components, and studies have found that perceptions of facial attractiveness for example are positively correlated with measurements of facial symmetry. Here we report the data on measurements of facial symmetry of 503 Turkish senior year high school students aged 17 to 18 years, of whom 133 males and 117 females were recruited from a slum district of Şentepe in Ankara (Group 1), and 131 males and 122 females from three high schools in wealthy central urban areas (Group 2). Digital images were used to assess the degree of facial asymmetry as measured from seven paired traits and calculated as a composite score. Facial asymmetry of participants in Group 1 (slum district) was significantly higher than that of participants in Group 2 (urban areas). Moreover, males in Group 1 were found to have higher facial asymmetry than females, while no sex difference was observed in Group 2. We conclude that poor living conditions have an influence on DI in humans, which manifests itself in the form of facial asymmetry, and that this might be particularly true for males.
Kuiper, N. A. & Leite, C. (2009). Personality impressions associated with four distinct humor styles. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 115–122.
This study examined how personality impressions about another person are influenced by the style of humor that person displays. Four distinct styles were examined, with two of these being adaptive (affiliative and self-enhancing humor), and two being maladaptive (aggressive and self-defeating humor). Participants read descriptions of an individual displaying each humor style, and then rated that individual on several other personality attributes (e.g., friendly, complaining). The adaptive humor styles enhanced personality impressions of another individual, whereas the maladaptive styles had strong detrimental effects. Furthermore, participants provided clearly differentiated personality impressions within both the adaptive and maladaptive humor categories. Affiliative humor led to more positive impressions of another than self-enhancing humor; whereas aggressive humor resulted in more negative personality impressions than self-defeating humor. These findings were discussed in terms of approaches to humor that acknowledge the multifaceted nature of this construct and the resulting impact on social relationships.
During human evolutionary history, there were "trade-offs" between expending time and energy on child-rearing and mating, so both men and women evolved conditional mating strategies guided by cues signaling the circumstances. Many short-term matings might be successful for some men; others might try to find and keep a single mate, investing their effort in rearing her offspring. Recent evidence suggests that men with features signaling genetic benefits to offspring should be preferred by women as short-term mates, but there are trade-offs between a mate's genetic fitness and his willingness to help in child-rearing. It is these circumstances and the cues that signal them that underlie the variation in short- and long-term mating strategies between and within the sexes.
Three experimental studies examined the relationship between altruistic behavior and the emergence of status hierarchies within groups. In each study, group members were confronted with a social dilemma in which they could either benefit themselves or their group. Study 1 revealed that in a reputation environment when contributions were public, people were more altruistic. In both Studies 1 and 2, the most altruistic members gained the highest status in their group and were most frequently preferred as cooperative interaction partners. Study 3 showed that as the costs of altruism increase, the status rewards also increase. These results support the premise at the heart of competitive altruism: Individuals may behave altruistically for reputation reasons because selective benefits (associated with status) accrue to the generous.