‘Is she really going out with him?’: Attractiveness exchange and commitment scripts for romantic relationships

Abstract

Abstract Three experiments document the contingencies of the attractiveness exchange-script. Experiment 1 (N\u202f=\u202f219) demonstrates that observers assume that the more-attractive partner in a romantic couple is relatively uncommitted to their relationship, and this script is stronger when evaluating women than men. Experiment 2 (N\u202f=\u202f165) demonstrates that observers assume that a less-attractive man compensates his more-attractive female partner by providing status and resources, but only in a committed relationship and only when the attractiveness-differential is moderate. Experiment 3 (N\u202f=\u202f107) demonstrates that highly-attractive men engage in mate-poaching behavior (proximity seeking) when a romantically-involved woman is accompanied by a less-attractive boyfriend, but not when she is alone or accompanied by a boyfriend who matches her attractiveness. This research affirms that observers possess implicit scripts concerning the exchange of relational benefits within relationships, and validates important premises of evolutionary models of attraction by behaviorally demonstrating men s use of mate-poaching tactics.