Are Sex Differences in Preferences for Physical Attractiveness and Good Earning Capacity in Potential Mates Smaller in Countries With Greater Gender Equality?
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional cross-cultural observational study
PubMed 31146580 · doi:10.1177/1474704919852921
What was done
The authors conducted a replication study analyzing mate preferences in a sample of 3,073 participants across 36 countries. They tested whether country-level gender equality attenuated typical sex differences in mate preferences—specifically, women valuing good earning capacity and men valuing physical attractiveness—while controlling for Galton's problem (cross-cultural statistical non-independence) and correcting for multiple comparisons.
What was found
The baseline sex differences replicated: women showed stronger preferences for mates with good earning capacity than men, and men showed stronger preferences for physically attractive mates than women. However, there was little evidence that these differences decreased in nations with greater gender equality. One initial association suggesting smaller sex differences in earning-capacity preference in more gender-equal nations was non-significant after adjusting for Galton's problem or correcting for multiple comparisons. Specific effect sizes and numeric statistics were not reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
These findings challenge social role theory, which posits that sex differences in mate preferences are primarily artifacts of societal gender inequality and should diminish as gender parity increases.
Limits
The abstract provides no exact statistical metrics or effect sizes. The observational cross-sectional design cannot establish causality. Country-level measures of gender equality may obscure regional or individual-level variation, and sample sizes within each of the 36 countries were not specified in the abstract.