Attraction Essay

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Attraction may be influenced by many factors. One possible explanation to explain attraction is the sexual selection theory firstly proposed by Darwin (1871) which includes two related processes. Intrasexual section was the first process which described the tendency of one sex to compete amongst themselves for access to members of the opposite sex. The second process intersexual selection which explained the inclination of members of one sex to selectively choose certain members of the opposite sex as partners. Intersexual selection was usually selected by females as they were the choosier and selective sex than males in mate preference. In addition Darwin (1871) also suggested the evolution of characteristics that offer reproductive advantages to organisms compared to survival advantages. Survival is vital to organisms as it affects reproduction, and those who are successful at being chosen by the opposite sex will evolve as they give organisms reproductive advantages. Trivers (1972) expanded on the sexual selection theory proposed by Darwin (1871) by claiming that there were two links between parental investment and sexual selection. The first association is that the sex that invests more in the offspring should be more selective about their mating preference, and this is because of the reproductive costs linked with unselective mating. The second link is that the sex that invests less in the offspring should compete more forcefully for the high-investing individual of the opposite sex. In addition Bateman (1948) suggested that sexual selection is defined by the different levels of investment by each sex to their offspring. Females invest more heavily in offspring as fertilisation, gestation and placentation all occur within... ... middle of paper ... ...alth. Males tend to have greater physiological health than those who have asymmetrical facial features (Manning, 1995). A study conducted by Grammer and Thornhill (1994) found that facial symmetry signalled health in males faces. However Shackelford and Larsen (1997)found a few significant negative links of facial symmetry with psychological, emotional and physiological health variables, but these findings did not replicate over their two samples. Also both males and females who have symmetrical facial features are rated as more physically attractive than those asymmetric individuals (Grammer &Thornhill, 1994). Many studies conducted on attractiveness using software such as image manipulation techniques, have found preference for faces that were changed to be more symmetrical (Little, Burt, Penton-Voak, &Perrett, 2001). In these studies only facial symmetry was

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