attraction is a youthful appearance,
which is linked to reproductive
capacity. In humans, mate ‘value’
therefore declines with age, beginning
in early adulthood. It follows, then,
that we are naturally inclined to
enhance our appearance.
But what attracts a man to a
woman fundamentally differs
from what women seek in a male
partner. ‘In virtually all of the
human populations sampled, males
rated physical attractiveness
(usually associated with youth)
significantly more important inF
E
A
T
U
R
E
mate choice than females did,’
says Australian evolutionary
anthropologist Sean McBride.
‘Females, by contrast, mostly rated
earning potential and ambition-cum-
industriousness as more important
factors when choosing a mate.’ In
other words, the attractiveness of the
man is directly linked to his skills and
prowess rather than his looks.
‘An evolutionary perspective
on human behaviour suggests that
human beings, like members of other
animal species, are likely to have
adaptations for assessing the “value”