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Buss (1989)
SEX DIFFERENCES IN HUMAN MATE
PREFERENCES
Context
 Darwin- suggested mate selection was a matter of evolution
(reproduction/ survival of one’s genes).


Evolutionary psychologists believe mate selection can be affected by
instincts maximising our chances of reproducing.
Buss was interested in 3 of these instincts:
 Parental investment- Trivers (1972) women should favour ambitious,
hardworking and rich men.
 Women invest more into child rearing (pregnancy/ typically the
primary caregiver) than men and are thus fussier in choosing a
partner.
 Reproductive value- Access to fertile females is the main factor
affecting male reproduction.
 Men will favour young women as female fertility peaks in late
teens/ early twenties.
 Facial appearance gives cues as to age. Therefore, men will favour
facial attractiveness.
 Paternal probability- want to be certain they pass on their genes.
 Men value chastity more.
Aim
 Do parental investment, reproductive value, and
paternal probability hold true across cultures- if so,
they are likely to be a result of evolution.
?
?
Procedure- Sample
 37 samples from 33 countries across 6 continents…

In cases where countries had more than one separate population
(Israel, Canada, S.Africa) a sample was taken from each population.
 10,047 participants

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4601 male, 5446 female
Avg. age: 23.05
 Sampling method:

Opportunity

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Student samples, people applying for marriage licenses (Estonia),
secondary-age schoolchildren (New Zealand)
Self-selecting/ volunteer

Responders to a newspaper advert (Germany).
Procedure- Measure/ DV
 2 questionnaires in native language
 Questionnaire on factors affecting mate choice
Filler questions disguise the aim of the experiment.
 Target variables of age, attractiveness, good financial prospects,
chastity, ambition, industriousness, and no previous sexual
experience.
 Rating scale:

0
Irrelevant

1
2
3
Indispensable
Questionnaire ranking factors affecting mate choice

Rank 13 factors by most important when choosing a partner
 Included good earning capacity and physical attractiveness.
Findings
 Good financial prospects
 36/37 cultures women placed more importance on good
financial prospects than men.
 Ambition and industriousness
 34/37 women placed more emphasis on ambition and
industriousness than men
 In Spanish, Columbian, and Zulu S.African samples this was
reversed
 Attractiveness
 In 37/37 cultures men rated attractiveness as more important
than women.
Findings Cont.
 Preferred age of partner
 Men preferred a partner younger than themselves, and
younger than the average woman’s ideal age of partner.
 Women preferred a man older than themselves.
 Chastity
 Most men preferred chaste women.
 In Western European countries this was only emphasised in
Ireland.
 Greatest cultural variation.
Conclusions
 Largely supports evolutionary theory
 Parental investment, reproductive value, and paternal
probability are important in mate choice across most cultures.
Evaluation- Strengths
 Large sample size- representative. Increased
generalisability of results.
 Validity- two separate measures used.


Questionnaires are valid measures of mate preferences.
Studies using other measures, such as marriage records, have
been criticised for measuring mate selection rather than
preference.

Cultural differences such as arranged marriage.
Evaluation- Weaknesses
 Sampling procedures unrepresentative


Majority of participants from industrialised countries
Majority of student samples
 Measure reduces representativeness

Can only be used for literate population.

Cultural differences: in some countries education for women is less
valued.
 Demand characteristics

Participant may guess the aim of the experiment particularly from
the ranking task.
 Socially sensitive


Evolution- deterministic (lack of free will).
Feminism- justifies discrimination (men value young, attractive
women)
Past Exam Questions
Section A
1. Describe the findings and conclusions of Buss’s (1989)
research ‘Sex differences in human mate preferences’.
[12] 2010
2. Outline the procedures of Buss’s (1989) research ‘Sex
differences in human mate preferences’. [12] 2009
Section B
1. Evaluate the methodology of Buss’s (1989) research
‘Sex differences in human mate preferences’. [12] 2011
2. Critically assess Buss’s (1989) research ‘Sex differences
in human mate preferences’. [12] 2009