Strategic use of nonverbal behaviour in the context of romantic attraction

Dosmukhambetova, Dina 2011. Strategic use of nonverbal behaviour in the context of romantic attraction. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

The main objective of this thesis is to demonstrate that individuals strategically change their facial expressions and other emotional behaviour in order to enhance their image in the eyes of a potential romantic partner. In three empirical chapters I report eight studies examining four different effects. The first two of these effects concern female self-presentational behaviour (Chapters 2 and 3), while the second two concern male self-presentational behaviour (Chapter 4). More specifically, in Chapter 2 I provide evidence for the hypothesis that when in a romantic mindset, females show less negative emotion to infants. In Chapter 3, I demonstrate that females motivated to attract a long-term partner present themselves in ways that suggest that they are likely to be faithful. Finally, in Chapter 4, I show that in the presence of an attractive female, males present themselves as fearless in reaction to a horror film and as affectionate towards children. I argue that positive reactions to infants, propensity to be faithful and fearlessness are advertised because they are desired by the opposite sex for various evolutionary reasons. The data I present also show that – with one exception – the presence of a potential romantic partner does not affect participants’ emotional experiences despite affecting their emotional expressions. Thus, for example, when males augment their expression of affection towards infants, their feelings towards the infants do not change. Overall, the work described in this thesis adds to the growing body of research showing that individuals engage in self-presentation in romantic contexts using various social and non-social behaviours (Mori, Chaiken, & Pliner, 1987; Griskevicius, Cialdini, & Kenrick, 2006), by showing that they engage in selfpresentation using nonverbal behaviour associated with emotional states.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Psychology
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	8 May 2017
Last Modified:	08 May 2017 10:49
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/100403

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