Yeah She’s a Gold Digger! The Reality of What Attracts Women and Men

Gender roles; you can’t change them. Sure the line in the sand can be made a bit hazy, but at the end of the day, there are certain biologically innate factors between the two sexes that can’t be ignored.

Is it sexist to say that women are attracted to rich, well-to-do men? It all depends on who you ask. The feminist might argue that it is, in that it is a social construct and a consequence of the unfair advantage men have towards procuring wealth. Ok, fair enough, but social construct aside, a study across 37 different cultures in 33 countries aims to show just what makes us tick when choosing a mate.

Regarding one’s mate, most people hold out hope for a “soul mate”, that best friend in the world that they are madly in love with and can live alongside under any circumstances, as long as they are together. Some people find this, others settle. Some cultures go so far as to arrange marriages, completely foregoing the entire courtship and dating process. Some cultures require potential suitors to send actual resumes to the family of their prospective bride to be. Every single culture has differentiated mating dynamics, and things that might be considered beautiful in some cultures, might be completely overlooked in others. There are, however, innate biological cues that attract men and women to each other. These cues, however subtle and even subconscious, have been facilitating human propagation since the beginning of (our) time.

These biological cues do not act by themselves, however. Some might argue that a much stronger barometer for mating selection is constructed within the social environment human beings find themselves in. That is, within modern society, the biological factors might be manifesting themselves as social factors e.g. the cue for women to find a mate that can protect them and provide security, translates to finding a mate who can provide financial security, which covers all the basics.

That opinion is congruent with the type of findings by research conducted at the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan. In a study aptly titled “Sex differences in human mate preferences: Evolutionary hypothesis tested in 37 cultures”, researchers aimed to find the “contemporary mating preferences (which) provide important clues to human reproductive history”.

Concisely, the findings showed that women are attracted to money (security), and men are attracted to bombshell type, curvaceous women (reproduction efficiency).

“Females were found to value cues to resource acquisition in potential mates more highly than males”. Our title is a bit derogatory, but it is joking in nature, and there is a method to the madness that is gold digging. It is a consequence of societal constructs that equate financial security with overall protection and safety. “Characteristics signaling reproductive capacity were valued more by males than females”, in laymen’s terms, large hips and behind, with a relatively pronounced chest. The study goes on to cite the underlying mechanisms of these attraction dynamics, and speaks on the cultural differences and congruencies that exist across the board.

It’s interesting to study the intricate mating rituals of other animals. From the birds to the bees, there are intriguing things males and females go through to win the hearts of a prospective mate. Humans don’t have rams for a duel, nor do they have elaborate and colorful wings to spread and show off in a dance. We do, however, have our own cues, and it seems the human man needs to procure financial security to attract a well-rounded (physically) female to make babies with. Security is traded for a womb. Nice.

Disclaimer: Even though the study cited in this article points to a perpetually male dominated society (the concentration of wealth and assets are in the possession of men), it is perfectly normal, and evolutionarily efficient for society to begin changing those dynamics. That being said, all of the financially independent and professionally ambitious women out there shouldn’t take offense, for they’ve got the best of both worlds.