Formation of personal relationships (Paper 2 topic)

How do personal relationships form? And what subtopics fall under this?

Mate preference. Evolution and culture.

What is the Johnston et al. study ?

A study that investigates whether women’s preferences for male facial features change across the menstrual cycle.

What was the research method for Johnston et al. and what where the procedures ?

A laboratory experiment where the female participants were shown digitally altered male faces, the participants dated these faces at different points of their menstrual cycle.

What were the findings of Johnston et al. ?

Women showed a presence for more masculine faces in their ovulatory (fertile) phase and preferred more feminine faces at other points in their cycle. This supports the evolutionary hypothesis that during peak fertility, women are subconsciously attracted to indicators of genetic fitness (eg. strong jawline).

What are some critical thinkings points for Johnston et al. ?

This study has a reductionist approach, focusing more on biological factors and undermining social or cultural influences on attraction.

What is Buss’s study about ?

A cross-cultural study that investigated universal male selection preferences in men and women across different cultures.

What is the research method and procedures of Buss ?

It was a cross-cultural correlational study with over 10,000 individuals from 37 different cultures. Participants completed a questionnaire asking them to rate the importance of various traits in a potential mate.

What were the findings of Buss’ study?

Men valued physical attractiveness and youth more than women did. Woman valued financial prospects, ambition, and social status more than men. Despite cultural differences, these trends were consistent across cultures, supporting the evolutionary explanation that natural selection has shaped mate preferences.

What are some critical thinking points of Buss’ study ?

There is a self-report bias, a risk of social desirability bias. Correlation is NOT causation, this study identifies associations but cannot prove that evolutionary pressures cause mate preferences.

What is Levine et al. ?

A study that investigated cross-cultural differences in the importance placed on love when choosing a marriage partner and how these attitudes relate to cultural values like individualism and collectivism.

What was the research method and procedures of Levine et al. ?

It was a cross-cultural survey and correlational study. The participants, college students from 11 countries were asked to fill out questionnaires assessing how important romantic love was in deciding to marry someone.

What were the findings of Levine et al. ?

In collectivist cultures, ( India, Pakistan, Philippines) fewer participants said loved was essential for marriage. Many said they would marry without love. In individualistic cultures, (USA, UK, Australia) most participants said they would not marry someone they weren’t in love with. The importance placed on love was positively correlated with individualism and negatively correlated with collectivism.

What are some limitations of Levine et al. ?

There was a sample bias on ONLY college students which doesn’t represent wider cultural attitudes. And there is also differing cultural interpretation to the word “love”, this concept might differ across cultures, which could affect how participants interpret the question.