TY - JOUR
T1 - Do assortative preferences contribute to assortative mating for adiposity?
AU - Fisher, Claire I.
AU - Fincher, Corey L.
AU - Hahn, Amanda C.
AU - Little, Anthony C.
AU - DeBruine, Lisa M.
AU - Jones, Benedict C.
PY - 2014/11
Y1 - 2014/11
N2 - Assortative mating for adiposity, whereby levels of adiposity in romantic partners tend to be positively correlated, has implications for population health due to the combined effects of partners' levels of adiposity on fertility and/or offspring health. Although assortative preferences for cues of adiposity, whereby leaner people are inherently more attracted to leaner individuals, have been proposed as a factor in assortative mating for adiposity, there have been no direct tests of this issue. Because of this, and because of recent work suggesting that facial cues of adiposity convey information about others' health that may be particularly important for mate preferences, we tested the contribution of assortative preferences for facial cues of adiposity to assortative mating for adiposity (assessed from body mass index, BMI) in a sample of romantic couples. Romantic partners' BMIs were positively correlated and this correlation was not due to the effects of age or relationship duration. However, although men and women with leaner partners showed stronger preferences for cues of low levels of adiposity, controlling for these preferences did not weaken the correlation between partners' BMIs. Indeed, own BMI and preferences were uncorrelated. These results suggest that assortative preferences for facial cues of adiposity contribute little (if at all) to assortative mating for adiposity.
AB - Assortative mating for adiposity, whereby levels of adiposity in romantic partners tend to be positively correlated, has implications for population health due to the combined effects of partners' levels of adiposity on fertility and/or offspring health. Although assortative preferences for cues of adiposity, whereby leaner people are inherently more attracted to leaner individuals, have been proposed as a factor in assortative mating for adiposity, there have been no direct tests of this issue. Because of this, and because of recent work suggesting that facial cues of adiposity convey information about others' health that may be particularly important for mate preferences, we tested the contribution of assortative preferences for facial cues of adiposity to assortative mating for adiposity (assessed from body mass index, BMI) in a sample of romantic couples. Romantic partners' BMIs were positively correlated and this correlation was not due to the effects of age or relationship duration. However, although men and women with leaner partners showed stronger preferences for cues of low levels of adiposity, controlling for these preferences did not weaken the correlation between partners' BMIs. Indeed, own BMI and preferences were uncorrelated. These results suggest that assortative preferences for facial cues of adiposity contribute little (if at all) to assortative mating for adiposity.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84908126594&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12055
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12055
U2 - 10.1111/bjop.12055
DO - 10.1111/bjop.12055
M3 - Article
C2 - 24168811
AN - SCOPUS:84908126594
SN - 0007-1269
VL - 105
SP - 474
EP - 485
JO - British Journal of Psychology
JF - British Journal of Psychology
IS - 4
ER -