bims-chumac 2023-04-16 papers

Issue of 2023–04–16
six papers selected by
Thomas Krichel, Open Library Society

PLoS One. 2023 ;18(4): e0284035

Antecedents of the red-romance effect: Men's attractiveness and women's fertility.

Maria Agthe, Daniela Niesta Kayser, Sascha Schwarz, Jon K Maner.

The color red has been implicated in a variety of social processes, including those involving mating. While previous research suggests that women sometimes wear red strategically to increase their attractiveness, the replicability of this literature has been questioned. The current research is a reasonably powered conceptual replication designed to strengthen this literature by testing whether women are more inclined to display the color red 1) during fertile (as compared with less fertile) days of the menstrual cycle, and 2) when expecting to interact with an attractive man (as compared with a less attractive man and with a control condition). Analyses controlled for a number of theoretically relevant covariates (relationship status, age, the current weather). Only the latter hypothesis received mixed support (mainly among women on hormonal birth control), whereas results concerning the former hypothesis did not reach significance. Women (N = 281) displayed more red when expecting to interact with an attractive man; findings did not support the prediction that women would increase their display of red on fertile days of the cycle. Findings thus suggested only mixed replicability for the link between the color red and psychological processes involving romantic attraction. They also illustrate the importance of further investigating the boundary conditions of color effects on everyday social processes.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0284035

J Sex Med. 2021 Jul 01. 18(7): 1198-1216

Uncovering the Most Important Factors for Predicting Sexual Desire Using Explainable Machine Learning.

Laura M Vowels, Matthew J Vowels, Kristen P Mark.

BACKGROUND: Low sexual desire is the most common sexual problem reported with 34% of women and 15% of men reporting lack of desire for at least 3 months in a 12-month period. Sexual desire has previously been associated with both relationship and individual well-being highlighting the importance of understanding factors that contribute to sexual desire as improving sexual desire difficulties can help improve an individual's overall quality of life.
AIM: The purpose of the present study was to identify the most salient individual (eg, attachment style, attitudes toward sexuality, gender) and relational (eg, relationship satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, romantic love) predictors of dyadic and solitary sexual desire from a large number of predictor variables.
METHODS: Previous research has relied primarily on traditional statistical models which are limited in their ability to estimate a large number of predictors, non-linear associations, and complex interactions. We used a machine learning algorithm, random forest (a type of highly non-linear decision tree), to circumvent these issues to predict dyadic and solitary sexual desire from a large number of predictors across 2 online samples (N = 1,846; includes 754 individuals forming 377 couples). We also used a Shapley value technique to estimate the size and direction of the effect of each predictor variable on the model outcome.
OUTCOMES: The outcomes included total, dyadic, and solitary sexual desire measured using the Sexual Desire Inventory.
RESULTS: The models predicted around 40% of variance in dyadic and solitary desire with women's desire being more predictable than men's overall. Several variables consistently predicted dyadic sexual desire such as sexual satisfaction and romantic love, and solitary desire such as masturbation and attitudes toward sexuality. These predictors were similar for both men and women and gender was not an important predictor of sexual desire.
CLINICAL TRANSLATION: The results highlight the importance of addressing overall relationship satisfaction when sexual desire difficulties are presented in couples therapy. It is also important to understand clients' attitudes toward sexuality.
STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: The study improves on existing methodologies in the field and compares a large number of predictors of sexual desire. However, the data were cross-sectional and there may have been variables that are important for desire but were not present in the datasets.
CONCLUSION: Higher sexual satisfaction and feelings of romantic love toward one's partner are important predictors of dyadic sexual desire whereas regular masturbation and more permissive attitudes toward sexuality predicted solitary sexual desire.

Keywords: Close Relationships; Machine Learning; Random Forests; Sexual Desire; Shapley Values

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2021.04.010

J Sex Res. 2023 Apr 13. 1-11

Racial Preferences in the Intimate Sphere Elicit Negative Reactions in Heterosexual Racial Minority and Majority Group Members.

Luke Huxley, Michael Thai.

Racial preferences are sometimes encountered in the sphere of dating, romance, and sex. Using an experimental design, 100 White American participants and 100 American participants of Color were exposed to a mock dating profile that either contained a disclosure of racial preference (i.e., "White guys/girls only") or did not. Owners of a profile disclosing a racial preference were perceived as more racist, less attractive, and were also rated less positively in a global sense than owners of a profile that did not disclose a preference. Participants were also less willing to connect with them. Additionally, participants who viewed a dating profile disclosing a racial preference reported greater negative affect and lower positive affect than participants who viewed a profile that did not disclose a preference. These effects were largely consistent across both White participants and participants of Color. These findings demonstrate that racial preferences in the intimate sphere are generally responded to unfavorably, both by people for whom rejection is implied by the preferences and by people who are personally unaffected by the preferences.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2197889

Trauma Violence Abuse. 2023 Apr 10. 15248380231162969

Dating Apps: A New Emerging Platform for Sexual Harassment? A Scoping Review.

Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan, Denise Volman-Pampanel, Eugenia Opuda, Noam Tarshish.

Currently, dating apps are one of the most popular platforms for meeting romantic and sexual partners. However, little is known about the potential for sexual harassment on these platforms. In the current scoping review, we sought to examine what is known about sexual harassment facilitated through smartphone dating apps. We searched for studies that reported on sexual harassment via dating apps through PubMed, Web of Science, PsycInfo, Communication Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, and IEEE Xplore databases. Twelve studies addressed the risk of sexual harassment on dating apps. We found that sexual harassment when using dating apps is prevalent and ranges between 57 and 88.8%, with two populations being at higher risk: women and individuals who identify as a sexual minority. In terms of forms of harassment, sexual harassment via dating apps can take place online (e.g., being sent unsolicited images, or "dick pics") or offline (e.g., a face-to-face meeting that was arranged on a dating app). Experiencing sexual harassment on dating apps is associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, loneliness, early childhood maltreatment, less perceived self-control, and lower self-esteem. Some studies suggest that experiencing sexual harassment on dating apps reflects social structures and appears differently in different groups (e.g., among sexual minorities). More research is needed to capture the prevalence of adult sexual harassment via the use of dating apps, the different forms of harassment, risk and protective factors, and social and cultural structures that facilitate this kind of sexual harassment.

Keywords: dating apps; scoping review; sexual harassment

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380231162969

J Am Coll Health. 2023 Apr 11. 1-9

The influence of family and culture on South Asian student dating violence survivors' college experiences.

Nadeeka Karunaratne.

Objective: This paper discusses the influence of family and cultural backgrounds on South Asian student survivors' understandings of dating relationships and help-seeking after experiencing dating violence. Methods: Six South Asian undergraduate women dating violence survivors participated in two thé talks (similar to semi structured interviews) and a photo-elicitation activity to share their experiences of dating violence and how they make meaning of these experiences. Findings: Through analysis guided by the tenets of Bhattacharya's Par/Des(i) framework, this paper highlights two key findings: 1) the powerful role of cultural values in students' conceptualizations of healthy and unhealthy relationships; and 2) the effect of familial and intergenerational experiences on students' help-seeking behaviors. Conclusion: Findings highlight the need to incorporate considerations of family and culture in efforts to address and prevent dating violence in higher education.

Keywords: College student; South Asian; cultural influence; dating violence; family

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2023.2194430

J Cosmet Dermatol. 2023 Apr 10.

The scrotum: A comparison of men's and women's aesthetic assessments.

Paula Albrecht, Carolin Eimer, Erich Kasten.

BACKGROUND: Cosmetic surgery is a growing trend. Opportunities for an individual to attain their personal aesthetic ideal via plastic surgery have now extended as far as the genital area. Adaptive surgery on intimate areas of the body may take place for physical complaints, but may instead be due to a desire to conform to a particular ideal. Breast operations, labia reductions, and penis lengthening are long-established interventions, the motives for which a number of previous studies have examined. Tightening of the scrotum, by contrast, is a new trend in the aesthetic surgery market. Notwithstanding its rapid increase, studies have yet to investigate aesthetic preferences as regards the scrotum.
AIMS: Accordingly, the aim of the present study is to compare men's and women's evaluation of various sizes of scrotum, to the end of assisting people opting to undergo this procedure in taking decisions on their visual preferences.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: The participants in this study rated a number of photographs of scrotums, in nine different lengths and widths, and completed a questionnaire whose aim was to determine whether assessments differed by gender. Further, we considered whether the variables of age, extraversion, openness to experience, and consumption of pornography influenced participants' evaluations.
RESULTS: We found no significant differences in evaluation of the aesthetic of scrotums in relation to any of these personality traits. The results show what sizes (lengths and widths) of scrotum the participants judged to be the most and least attractive.
DISCUSSION: The esthetics of the scrotum is little explored. In this study, only normal deviations were considered, i.e. within one standard adjustment. Further studies should consider extremes.
CONCLUSION: Ultimately, it was barely possible to identify a "beautiful" scrotum; we must instead speak of the least ugly.

Keywords: attractiveness; cosmetic surgery; genital aesthetic; plastic surgery; psychology; scrotum

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.15712