Factors That Trigger Attraction Page 1

Running head: NON TACTILE FACTORS THAT TRIGGER SEXUAL ATTRACTION

Non Tactile Factors that Trigger Sexual Attraction in Women

Te-Erika Patterson

Barry University

Spring 2010
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Table of Contents

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………3

Statement of Problem……………………………………………………………….5

Statement of Purpose………………………………………………………............. 7

Statement of Hypothesis……………………………………………………............ 9

Limitations………………………………………………………..……….. 10

Assumptions……………………………………………………………….. 11

Review of Related Literature………………………………………………………. 12

Methodology……………………………………………………………………….. 14

Participants………………………………………………………………………….14

Instruments & Analysis……………………………………………………..............

14

Experimental Design & Procedure…………………………………………………..16

References……………………………………………………………………………18
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Introduction

There’s a guy out there who weighs 100 pounds, loves fixing computers and dreams of

working for NASA. He has never been on a date and doesn’t suppose he should since he

doesn’t look like Tyson Beckford or Brad Pitt. He assumes no woman will want him. He

is inundated with images of the ideal male through media and entertainment television

and every glance in the mirror confirms the negative assumption that he will never get

laid. Why would a woman want him when there are so many well stacked men who hit

the gym every evening. His own attempts at building his body into the perfect machine

left him in the hospital with a broken toe after a 5 pound weight fell on him during a

work out session.

Sadly, he resigns himself to a life of solitude and masturbation. His pornography

collection is plentiful and he has pet names for his various lubricants and sexual

enhancement toys. Will he ever have a chance to ejaculate in the company of another

human being? Will he wear the title, “just a friend” for his entire life?

The answer is No. There are multitudes of women who are sexually attracted to men who

fall outside of the realm of society’s expressed ideal for what a woman should want in a

man. There are men who don’t have 6 pack abs who get to enjoy sex on a regular basis.

The question is, what qualities do men possess that allow them to taste the delightful fruit

of a woman without breaking their backs at the gym or rising through the ranks of

corporate leadership?
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This study will assess the non tactile factors that contribute to sexual attraction for men

without the physical attributes that would generally cause a woman to swoon.
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Statement of Problem

Men all over the world spend hours upon hours in an attempt to cultivate the perfect look

and lifestyle to attract the women they desire. They spend fortunes on fast cars, beat their

bodies into submission to craft the perfect abs and will fearlessly walk through fire in

pursuit of attention and sexual compliance from the women they admire. On many

occasions, their efforts result in success; they attain the attention and affection from the

women they desire but in some instances their efforts result in blank stares, muffled

giggles or restraining orders.

If it is a societal assumption that men with bulging muscles and plentiful bank accounts

are ideal then why do men who possess these characteristics sometimes falter when it

comes to being on the receiving end of sexual desire from women? Why do some men

make the cut and others get cut off? What exactly is it about some men that cause women

to desire them sexually without even a touch? Is there hope for men with less than

pleasing physical traits and less than plentiful bank accounts? I believe so. Millions of

women around the world hook up, make out and become impregnated by men who are

less than ideal for who society says they should be sexually attracted to. Why is this so?

I believe there are other factors that contribute to sexual attraction to certain men. These

factors can not be measured by a dollar amount or with a tape measure. This study will

examine the different traits found in men that contribute to sexual attraction which are not

related to touch.
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To date there have been hundreds of studies on attraction and a multitude of articles

which attempt to teach men how to sexually arouse a woman physically. However, I have

not found one specific study which addresses the factors that contribute to arousal

without the stimulation of touch. Research presented by John R. Jacobs in 1992

describes in detail the four facilitators that influence a desire for romance and lead to

romantic attraction. They are distress, identity enhancement, aging and social pressures

and sexual desires. Other studies have accurately categorized why two individuals

become attracted to each other but the specific area of physical and sexual attraction is

not addressed in any of these studies.

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Statement of Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine non tactile factors that trigger sexual attraction in

women. This study will gauge and present evidence of a women’s ability to become

sexually attracted to and/or aroused by a man who is not necessarily generally attractive

or well off financially.

This study is important because it will help women to better understand why they choose

the partners they choose and it will also aid in boosting the esteem of men who do not

hold the presumed characteristics that generally make a man attractive. This study is

important for any person who desires to be in a romantic or sexual relationship. The

benefits of this study are:

1) A deeper understanding of why women are attracted to a wide variety of men.

2) A healthier understanding of characteristics a man can develop to become more

attractive to women.

I believe that other traits found in men following the initial interaction can create a

physical attraction in women. Traits like:

1) Potential- A man who has proven that he has the potential for success by being an

earnest, hard worker who is diligent in his work ethic.

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2) Emotional Support – A man who eases fears and reassures.

3) Caregiver- A man who allows you to feel that your needs and desires will be

taken care of by him to the best of his ability. Your needs and desires are a

priority in his life.

4) Morals/Ethics/Belief System – A man whose beliefs and morals match your own.
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Statement of Hypothesis

In my opinion, women are presumed to be typically attracted to men who hold alpha male

characteristics like men who are always the leader in high positions with ample financial

holdings. I believe this assumption is only a socially constructed idea and unrealistic as

every man can not be the leader in all social circles and every man’s body will not be

crafted to resemble the underwear advertisements that we are inundated by through mass

marketing schemes.

Somehow, millions of men meet women who are sexually attracted to them without

having to develop the physical brawn or be top stockholders in fortune 500 companies. I

believe that a man who a woman views as having the potential to be successful in his

career and in his life, a man who shares the same values and ideas that the woman holds

or a man who is a noted caregiver, often resembling the ideal father figure that the

woman may or may not have had, may also be seen as sexy or attractive.
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Limitations

Because this study has been crafted as an anonymous questionnaire, a few major

limitations may present themselves. For example,

1) Due to the length of the questionnaire the participant may become tired of reading

the questions and respond automatically instead of honestly.

2) The language of the short stories/scenarios may affect the reader emotionally,

swaying their responses.

3) The fact that participants oftentimes do not actually get to meet the partner and/or

have an opportunity to move a step further to actually experiencing the portrayed

scenarios this study is quite different from real life in terms of how attraction

develops and how it affects one's personal interaction and reactions.

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Assumptions

Before we can analyze the findings in this study we must come to an agreeable

understanding about the ideas presented.

In this study we assume that:

1) Women are taught to be attracted to men who are physically fit and attractive and

men who are secure financially.

2) Men are taught that the man that has brawns and financial abundance will attract

the woman.

3) There are successful relationships between men and women where the man does

not possess the physical brawn or financial abundance that the woman assumes is

necessary.

4) A successful relationship is defined as a relationship where both parties feel

satisfied in their interaction with each other.

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Review of Literature

As the old saying ‘‘birds of a feather flock together’’ indicates, individuals

should be attracted to others who share their own characteristics according to a study

done by Luo and Zhang in 2009. Whereas general reciprocal liking holds that individuals

who generally like other people tend to be liked by others, dyadic reciprocal

liking refers to the unique liking shared between two partners. According to Luo and

Zhang, there has been a great deal of evidence that partners’ physical attractiveness

is a reliable predictor of attraction in initial encounters. Initial encounter and sexual

attraction based on physical traits versus non physical traits is what we hope to measure

in this study.

It has been well catalogued that people with similar personality patterns are especially

inclined to like each other but the study done by Tenney, Turkeheimer, et.al adds the

significance of the fact that mere exposure adds to the attractiveness of a potential

partner. Those we are exposed to on a consistent basis are more likely to become

attractive to us.

“The mere exposure effect is the finding that all else being equal, familiar stimuli…

Familiar stimuli are easier to perceive and interpret than novel because information about

the familiar has already been processed at least once before. In general, processing

stimuli with ease (called perceptual fluency or processing fluency) is experienced as

pleasurable; and when people encounter a familiar stimulus, they might attribute the
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pleasure they feel from perceptual fluency to the stimulus itself . (Tenney, Turkheimer,

et. Al 2009)

On the basis of a survey of attitudes on dating and marriage the survey reported that

among male and female college students, 90% and 81%, respectively, considered having

a sense of humor to be critical in a potential mate. (McGee 2009) If sense of humor is

rated as critical in a potential mate then factors other than brawn and financial stability

should be critical as well.

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Methodology

The population for this study is defined as all adult women who are capable of expressing

the desire to engage in a romantic/sexual relationship and/or express a sexual interest in a

man.

Participants

Participants in this study must be women over the age of 18 who have previously

expressed a sexual desire to be intimate with a man at some point in their past.

Participants will be pulled from an ad on MSN.com on the front page which advertises

the study. MSN.com receives a multitude of visitors each day who I believe are a

representative sample of genders and attitudes which reflect the diverse population in our

country.

Instruments & Analysis

A questionnaire has been designed which has 30 scenarios written in the form of short

stories that engage the participant emotionally which will gauge their sexual interest.

Volunteers may respond to the questionnaire anonymously and submit their responses

online automatically.

Scenarios will be created that demonstrate men showing different traits such as

dedication to family, consistency in work ethic, display of romantic affection,

physical attractiveness and financial generosity and provision. Questions will be

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randomly placed in the questionnaire with no indication to the participant what they are

measuring.

After the data is collected a statistical review of the areas in which women presented the

strongest sexual desire will be catalogued, ultimately measuring the traits that men

possess which stimulate strong sexual desire in women.

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Experimental Design

A sample question on the online questionnaire will read:

You’ve seen Matthew every morning for the past 3 months. His car pulls in to the

circular drive through of the elementary school moments after yours does. You watch as

he steps from the driver’s side of his 2006 Nissan Ultima to open the door for his son.

His son is neatly dressed and always smiling as he waves goodbye to his father. Matthew

is equally as immaculate and well kept. You admire the way he watches his son walk into

the school before pulling off, headed to work.

Rate your level of sexual attraction:

A) Very Interested B) Interested C) Mildy Interested D) Uninterested

Seymour has been your friend for a year and a half. His apartment is across the quad

from yours and you run into him almost daily as you run your errands and go to and

from work. Every evening he waves at you as he walks across the courtyard to his

apartment. You smile at the way his hands are full of grit and grim as he returns from his

construction job. As his door slams shut you imagine him pulling off his smelly work shirt

and tossing it into the hamper, removing his shoes and placing them on the patio to air

out and jumping in the shower. Every day this ritual continues and you can not stop

thinking about how hard working he is and how dedicated he is to his profession. The
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smell of concrete now reminds you of him and you wonder what he looks like beneath

that dirty t-shirt.

Rate your level of sexual attraction:

B) Very Interested B) Interested C) Mildy Interested D) Uninterested

Time Frame

The study will run over a period of 2 weeks through an active link on the website until

500 participants have completed the questionnaire.

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References

Jacobs, John R. (1992). Facilitators of romantic attraction and their relation to lovestyle.

Social Behavior and personality. 227-234.

Luo, S., & Zhang, G. (2009). What leads to romantic attraction: Similarity, reciprocity,

security, or beauty? Evidence from a speed-dating study. Journal of

Personality, 77(4), 933-964. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2009.00570.x.

Elizabeth R. Tenney, Eric Turkheimer and Thomas F. Oltmanns (2009) Being liked is

more than having a good personality: The role of matching Journal of Personality, 132,

21-22

McGee, Elizabeth, (2009) Effect of humor on interpersonal attraction and mate selection.

Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, Vol 143(1), Jan, 2009. pp. 67-77.