Contributed by: ElyseRomano on Sunday, January 01 2012 @ 08:54 am
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There are a few things that I look forward to at the end of every year. Christmas dinner with my family. Making resolutions for the new year. And all the Top 10 lists.
"Top 10 Albums Of The Year." "Top 10 Movies Of The Year." "Top 10 News Stories Of The Year." It's a quick, easy, and pop culture-friendly way to reflect on the major stories and scandals of the last 12 months, and this year YourTango has added a new list to the mix: The 11 Weirdest Dating Studies Of 2011.
Let's see what made the cut...
Men prefer to date women who have been dumped. A study published by the University of Michigan found that men prefer to date women who were dumped by their last boyfriends, while women prefer to date men who initiated their last breakup. The team behind the study speculates that when a man initiates a breakup it reinforces male dominance and traditional gender roles, whereas a woman who initiates a breakup is perceived as picky and high-maintenance.
Highlighting your flaws may make you more appealing on online dating sites. OkCupid ran a study that analyzed the photo vote patterns and messages from 43,000 female members. They found that falling in the middle of the attractiveness scale (being "cute" rather than "hot" or "unattractive") didn't always work out in women's favor. Playing up the features they thought that men wouldn't like, however, did prove to be a successful strategy for women.
People can identify a cheater by the sound of his or her voice. 120 male and female college students were asked to make vowel sounds in a range of pitches, then participants selected the voices that they thought were most attractive and the voices they thought belonged to cheaters. Men associated higher-pitched female voices with cheating, while women associated lower-pitched male voices with infidelity. There may be a biological imperative for the women's response: a deep voice could be indicative of a higher testosterone level, which may in turn be indicative of more promiscuity and an increased likelihood of cheating.
Adele could get you a date. Adele's most famous songs are about breakups, but it turns out that listening to her music may be a good way to hook up. A dating site called Tastebuds.fm, which matches potential dates based on their taste in music, found that the most successful online daters are fans of Adele's music. Lovers of Arcade Fire, Kings of Leon, and the Arctic Monkeys were also lucky in love, while Metallica, Linkin Park, and Eminem fans were the least popular dates.
Hamsters are unlikely to ruin your chances of getting a date. Yep, someone actually studied that! When Craigslist.co.uk asked single men and women what kind of pet would make them less inclined to date someone, the hamster won the coveted title of "Least Likely To Break A Couple Up." 28% said they wouldn't date a dog owner and 25% wouldn't date a cat owner, but only 10% said a hamster is a dealbreaker.
The remaining six weirdest dating studies of 2011 are waiting just around the corner...