The primacy of trust within romantic relationships: Evidence from conjoint analysis of HEXACO-derived personality profiles

The Effect of Beautification Strategies on Mating Popularity Judged by Men from the People's Republic of China

Contemporary women frequently employ beautification strategies. The impact of such strategies, such as plastic surgery, on mating popularity in different mate contexts remains unclear. To investigate this issue, the current study conducted two experiments. In Experiment 1, beautification strategies were manipulated using three images of the same female with different conditions (natural, makeup, and plastic surgery). The results indicated that when the beautification strategies were not informed, surgical-enhanced and makeup targets were perceived as significantly more attractive, loyal, and popular among potential mates than natural targets. However, when participants were informed of the beautification strategies, both natural and makeup targets showed a significant increase in perceived loyalty and mating popularity. In contrast, surgically enhanced targets saw a reduction in these dimensions. Experiment 2 aimed to reduce the confounding effect of facial attractiveness by using vignettes. The results indicated that the mating popularity of natural targets was significantly higher than that of makeup or surgically enhanced targets, with surgically enhanced targets being the least popular. Moreover, the results revealed the mediating role of perceived loyalty in the impact of beautification strategies on long-term mating popularity. This study sheds light on the potential stigmatization and negative bias toward beautification strategies in the mating market. Additionally, it provides guidance for women who intend to enhance their mate popularity through plastic surgery.

When the truth helps and when it hurts: How honesty shapes well-being

Despite honesty being valued in many settings, there is some ambiguity regarding the conditions under which it is beneficial or harmful for individual and relational well-being. We review and evaluate current work linking honesty to well-being. Specifically, we highlight and distinguish associations between honesty and different types of well-being within people, between people, and among broader groups, organizations, and societies. Importantly, we provide additional context that explains why honesty is not universally associated with greater well-being-and how it may even incur costs for individuals. We provide suggestions for future directions for moving toward a more holistic understanding of honesty and the ways in which honesty can be used to understand individual and relational functioning.

Testing the Mate Preference Priority Model with the Profile-Based Experimental Paradigm: A Replication and Extension

OBJECTIVE

Although the mate preference priority model (MPPM; Li et al., 2002) has advanced our understanding of mate preferences, tests of the MPPM have relied on methods using text labels and thus lack ecological validity. We address this gap by testing the MPPM using Townsend and colleagues' (1990a; 1990b; 1993) profile-based experimental paradigm, which utilizes profiles comprising photos of pre-rated models to manipulate physical attractiveness as well as costumes and descriptions to manipulate social status.

METHOD

Using Singaporean samples, we conducted two studies (Study 1 n = 431, Study 2 n = 964) where participants judged the short-term and long-term mating desirability of opposite-sex profiles varying systematically on physical attractiveness and social status. We also tested whether treating these attributes as ordinal or continuous variables would be more valid.

RESULTS

Results showed broad support for evolutionary predictions of mate preferences and priorities while revealing an increased premium placed on social status in our sample. We also found that continuous operationalizations produced less inflated results.

CONCLUSIONS

The current research provides the first non-label, profile-based test of the MPPM, a well-powered replication of the profile-based paradigm, and an opportunity to observe the robustness and variations of mate preferences in a non-Western culture.

Psychological barriers to effective altruism: An evolutionary perspective

People usually engage in (or at least profess to engage in) altruistic acts to benefit others. Yet, they routinely fail to maximize how much good is achieved with their donated money and time. An accumulating body of research has uncovered various psychological factors that can explain why people's altruism tends to be ineffective. These prior studies have mostly focused on proximate explanations (e.g. emotions, preferences, lay beliefs). Here, we adopt an evolutionary perspective and highlight how three fundamental motives - parochialism, status, and conformity - can explain many seemingly disparate failures to do good effectively. Our approach outlines ultimate explanations for ineffective altruism, and we illustrate how fundamental motives can be leveraged to promote more effective giving.

The Khoekhoegowab Personality Inventory: The Comparative Validity of a Locally Derived Measure of Traits

Objective: This study explores a personality inventory derived from the results of an indigenous lexical study of personality. From the 272 most commonly used personality descriptors in Khoekhoegowab, the most-spoken of extant Khoesan click languages of southern Africa, an 11-factor model of personality-trait structure was identified. Here, the Khoekhoegowab Personality Inventory (KPI) was created based on those results. Its psychometric properties, the convergent and divergent validity of its scales, and its incremental validity over Big Five and Six traits for predicting physical and mental health, religious practice and attitudes, and income are reported. Methods: Two to five key terms were selected for each of 10 KPI scales: Temperance, Prosocial Diligence, Gossip, Honesty/Morality, Temper, Implacability, Humility, Vanity, Resiliency vs. Agitation, and Courage vs. Fear. These 38 total items were administered to a large sample of adult speakers of Khoekhoegowab in Namibia (N = 632), together with five imported inventories translated into Khoekhoegowab: the 30-item Questionnaire Big Six (QB6), General Self-Reported Health, the Cascades Mental Health Assessment, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Duke Religion Index. The properties and intercorrelations of KPI subscales are explored, and their predictive ability for the other variables is compared to that of the QB6. Results: Due to the small number of items on each scale, poor internal consistency was anticipated, but the KPI scales' properties were somewhat better than those of the QB6. R-square change by the inventories as a whole, after accounting for age and gender, indicted that the KPI scales explained more variance than the QB6 scales in almost all criterion variables. Replication of established associations for Big Six traits was mixed: associations were largely as expected for Resiliency, Conscientiousness, and Honesty, but less so for Agreeableness and Extraversion. Conclusions: The KPI had some advantages over the QB6 in predicting physical and mental health. In particular, the four items of Resiliency vs. Agitation predicted lower scores on all physical and mental problem scales. Given psychological-care needs in Namibia, this might be used as a non-intrusive screener. Measurement challenges common to both surveys are discussed, possible solutions, and the utility of higher-order structures are discussed.

Influence of Lack of Trust on Romantic Relationship Problems: The Mediating Role of Partner Cell Phone Snooping

We investigated how a lack of trust in one's romantic partner exacerbates problems such as emotional instability, conflict, or intention to break up in relationships with the role of cell phone snooping as a mediator. A cross-sectional survey of married individuals (n = 329) was conducted using an online questionnaire. Results indicate that lack of trust is a significant predictor of romantic relationship problems. In addition, structural equation modeling results support the theoretical model indicating that cell phone snooping partially mediates the significant relationship between emotional instability, intention to break up, and conflicts. Findings support the development of trust in romantic partners as an approach to stability and avoidance of problems in romantic relationships.