Empirical tests described in this article support hypotheses derived from evolutionary theory on the perceptions of literary characters. The proper and dark heroes in British Romantic literature of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries respectively represent long-term and short-term mating strategies. Recent studies indicate that for long-term relationships, women seek partners with the ability and willingness to sustain paternal investment in extended relationships. For short-term relationships, women choose partners whose features indicate high genetic quality. In hypothetical scenarios, females preferred proper heroes for long-term relationships. The shorter the relationship under consideration, the more likely women were to choose dark heroes as partners.
Kruger, D.J., & Fisher, M. (2005). Alternative Male Mating Strategies are Intuitive to Women. Current Research in Social Psychology, 11, 39-50. Download the PDF
In this investigation, female college students (291) read brief sketches of characters from 19th Century novels exemplifying alternative male mating strategies. The proper hero ''dad'' advertises high potential for paternal investment by being compassionate, romantic, and industrious, whereas the dark hero ''cad'' advertises high genetic quality by being competitive, dominant, and brave. Women preferred the ''dad'' for long-term relationships, but were more likely to choose the ''cad'' for brief sexual relationships. These preferences were expected, as they benefit the women’s reproductive success. Participants also inferred critical attributes and behaviors from the character descriptions that omitted this information.
Kruger, D.J., & Fisher, M. (2005). Males identify and respond adaptively to the mating strategies of other men. Sexualities, Evolution, and Gender, 7, 233-244. Download the PDF
We recently demonstrated that college-aged women who were given a brief character sketch of personality features consistent with each strategy readily comprehended alternative male mating strategies. In the current study, we confirmed that collegeaged males are also able to identify traits and tendencies associated with long-term ''dad'' and short-term ''cad'' mating strategies. Participants were aware of the cads’ greater tendency for mating effort and success with women and the dads’ greater suitability for long-term relationships and potential for paternal investment in offspring. There was some preference for dads rather than cads in social alliances. Participants also predicted responses to these characters in ways that would benefit their own reproductive success. Participants’ personality attributes, hypothetical behaviors, and actual behaviors generally corresponded with their judgments of their similarity to the character descriptions.
Kruger, D.J. (2006). Male facial masculinity influences attributions of personality and reproductive strategy. Personal Relationships, 13, 451-463. Download the PDF
Facial masculinity may be used as a cue in female mate choice, as it reflects the success of the male genotype in its developmental environment. Women may maximize reproductive success by using a conditional strategy favoring highly masculine facial features for short-term relationships and feminized facial features in men for long-term relationships. Three studies examine reactions to masculinized and feminized male facial composites. Properties of the original composite image affect ratings of critical attributes and the magnitude of the differences in ratings between versions undergoing identical process of geometric manipulation (Study 1). Both men and women attribute personality, behavior, and mating strategies consistent with predictions derived from the good genes and mating trade-off hypotheses (Study 2). Participants accurately grouped behavioral tendencies related to high mating effort/risky strategies and high parenting effort/risk adverse strategies and associated mating effort more so with masculinized faces and parenting effort more so with feminized faces (Study 3). These results indicate that male facial masculinity serves as a visual cue for inferring personality and reproductive strategy.