Do Men Go For Looks?
By Nina Atwood

A recent study seemed to confirm that men choose women as mates based primarily on looks. The study was done in a speed dating venue, looked at the choices of 26 men and 20 women, ranging in age from 26 to early 40s. Men were surveyed prior to the speed dating game and their stated preferences were compared to their actual choices. The conclusion: though they stated they were looking for women with certain characteristics, they actually chose primarily based on physical beauty. No surprise there.

But what are we to conclude from this study? One obvious conclusion is that in a speed dating venue that requires men to make a choice in a short period of time, beautiful women get chosen more often. But what are they chosen for?

In a speed dating venue, men choose women for another date. They are not choosing for a lifetime relationship, just for another date. That is it.

Of course, if you do not get to the next date, it is kind of tough to get to a lifetime relationship. That next date is your doorway to more exploration, but there are certainly no guarantees. So maybe the conclusion for women is this: if you take good care of yourself - diet, exercise, up to date hair and clothes - you stand a better chance of getting to that next date.

But at the end of the day, couples get together because of mental, emotional, and spiritual chemistry. They stay together happily because of shared values and a common vision for life PLUS the all-important daily actions that maintain a loving connection.

Nina Atwood is a licensed therapist and nationally known relationship expert with three published self-help books on communication and love. Be Your Own Dating Service: A Step-by-Step Guide to Finding and Keeping Healthy Relationships, Date Lines: Communication From "Hello" to "I Do" and Everything In Between, and Soul Talk: Powerful, Positive Communication for a Loving Partnership. Her expertise is regularly sought by national media, including the Wall Street Journal, Health Magazine, Men's Health, LifeTimeTVOnline.com, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and many more. She has appeared on numerous regional television shows and hundreds of radio shows nationally. Nina's web site, http://www.singlescoach.com is accessed daily by thousands of single men and women seeking leading edge relationship advice. Nina's newest book, Temptations of the Single Girl: The Ten Dating Traps You Must Avoid, is scheduled for release by January 2008.

 

 

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