OK, now this all sound extremely sexist and all, and for that I apologize- but really, it seems to be true. In a paper published last year in the Proceeding of the Royal Society B, Belgian scientists find exactly that- men can't really think straight after seeing beautiful women. (Note to wife: I am clearly the exception to this rule) (Note to Wife 2: errr, what I mean is that yes, you are beautiful- and even still, I can think straight)
A series of experiments were devised to test the effect of viewing sexy women on their performance during an ultimatum game, which basically tests individuals ability to bargain effectively. To this the researchers added an indirect measure of testosterone levels, the 2D:4D ratio. What they hoped to see was that mens susceptibility to “sex appeal”, i.e. porn was greater in high testosterone men. Well- guess what- they are... See the graphs (in the paper) for the evidence.
I can just see the sales industry picking up an this one- maybe for their own good. Wouldn't it be amazing to replicate this using “real” situations- like car sales for instance. I can also see some women using this to their advantage as well- both in business and elsewhere.
People always use the phrase “dress to impress”; it now seems that this has a little more to it than simple 1st impressions and such... Women....?
Other people's posts: Aetiology, Dr Petra's, Free Republic, Science and politics.
I'll just make reference to a comment over at Aetiology: "Now I know why they allow sexy bikini-clad women to walk around casinos". True indeed...
