David Dzumba djd0166
Critique of “The self-reported importance of olfaction during human mate choice”
Authors Sergeant, Davies, Dickins and Griffiths in their abstract say that “Olfactory characteristics were declared to be extremely important during mate selection, more so than almost all other characteristics.” Yet in the introduction they talk about visual appearance being most important, and then go on to talk about the differences between men and women and the importance of olfaction in selecting a mate (women are more particular). I can see where if a person smells bad then he or she might be considered an unsuitable candidate as a mate. But a person smelling good (whether natural body odor or perfume or cologne) doesn’t seem like a good predictor for a lifelong mate either. Things like personality, earning potential and resources, ability to provide, and overall compatibility would factor more in determining a mate. This assumes …show more content…
The cultural makeup of the study was 70% white, 17% African-American, nine percent Asian and four percent unspecified. It might have been beneficial to have a cross-section of those surveyed, such as measuring a black woman’s reaction to a white or Asian person, whose “smells” might be different from what they’re used to (because of products used or foods eaten, for example). A woman might smell of smoke, which a man might find offensive because he is anti-smoking. But would he immediately rule her out as a potential mate unless she unequivocally said she’d never quit smoking? Or might a woman immediately discount a potential suitor because he wears the same Old Spice cologne as her dad, and that would be
Critique of “The self-reported importance of olfaction during human mate choice”
Authors Sergeant, Davies, Dickins and Griffiths in their abstract say that “Olfactory characteristics were declared to be extremely important during mate selection, more so than almost all other characteristics.” Yet in the introduction they talk about visual appearance being most important, and then go on to talk about the differences between men and women and the importance of olfaction in selecting a mate (women are more particular). I can see where if a person smells bad then he or she might be considered an unsuitable candidate as a mate. But a person smelling good (whether natural body odor or perfume or cologne) doesn’t seem like a good predictor for a lifelong mate either. Things like personality, earning potential and resources, ability to provide, and overall compatibility would factor more in determining a mate. This assumes …show more content…
The cultural makeup of the study was 70% white, 17% African-American, nine percent Asian and four percent unspecified. It might have been beneficial to have a cross-section of those surveyed, such as measuring a black woman’s reaction to a white or Asian person, whose “smells” might be different from what they’re used to (because of products used or foods eaten, for example). A woman might smell of smoke, which a man might find offensive because he is anti-smoking. But would he immediately rule her out as a potential mate unless she unequivocally said she’d never quit smoking? Or might a woman immediately discount a potential suitor because he wears the same Old Spice cologne as her dad, and that would be