Young men prioritise attractiveness while young women value personality, but preferences converge with age, according to a survey of over 7,000 Australian online dating users. The study, published in Plos One, asked participants aged 16 to 65 to rate nine traits of an ideal partner on a scale of 0 to 100.
Traits were grouped into aesthetics (age, attractiveness, physical build), resources (intelligence, education, income) and personality (trust, openness, emotional connection). Both sexes rated physical build, attractiveness and all three personality traits as highly important, while income was deemed less critical.
Men aged 18 to 25 placed greater emphasis on attractiveness and physical build, but these factors became less important as they aged. Women consistently valued age, education, intelligence, income, trust and emotional connection more highly. Younger women under 25 rated personality factors significantly higher than men of the same age, but this gap narrowed after age 30. For those 60 and older, men valued personality more than women.
Lead author Stephen Whyte from Queensland University of Technology said older respondents cared less about aesthetics and more about personality, suggesting 'the wisdom of age'. He attributed gender differences to parental investment theory, which posits that women are choosier due to greater reproductive investment.
Beatrice Alba from Deakin University noted that while many gender differences stem from socialisation, some are evolutionarily driven. However, the theory has been criticised for perpetuating sexism. The study also found that people with strong preferences for one trait tended to value all traits highly, especially during peak fertility and income years.
Brendan Zietsch from the University of Queensland cautioned that stated preferences may not reflect actual choices, an ongoing research area. The survey, part of the Australian Sex Survey, was conducted in 2016 among users of Adult Match Maker and may not represent the broader population.
