Attraction is a funny thing.
You may not even realize that you're acting in a way that drives men away when what you're
really trying to do is draw them toward you.
Luckily, we're here to help with a look at some surprising things that turn men off the
most.
Self confidence is a quality that men find highly attractive in women.
But it's important to understand that there's a difference between being confident and being
conceited.
Unfortunately, though, studies have shown that people who tend to boast or brag are
less likely than others to be aware of how annoying boasting and bragging are.
So take it from us: people who are truly confident don't need to go around telling everyone how
awesome they are.
If you're secure in yourself, don't worry: men will notice without you needing to tell
them.
Is there a worse label in dating than "high maintenance?"
"There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance."
"Which one am I?" "you're the worst kind.
You're high maintenance, but you think you're low maintenance."
But what, exactly, is "high maintenance?"
Urban Dictionary defines it the same way as Harry: a person who,
"...has higher than normal expectations; has a greater requirement for affection or attention;
has more needs and/or demands and therefore more difficult or challenging."
The issue here is just who is setting these expectations.
Armele Philpotts, a member of the British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy,
told The Huffington Post that some men use the term as a way to avoid the responsibility
of holding up their end of the relationship.
"They refuse to take responsibility in resolving difficulties, preferring to label you as the
problem."
So if expecting your emotional needs to be met in a relationship turns your prospective
partner off, maybe they're not the person you want to turn on in the first place.
When it comes to overall attractiveness, Markus Rantala, an evolutionary biologist at Turku
University in Finland, told Science Nordic that
"...facial attractiveness is one of the most important factors — more important than
… body shape."
But just what makes for an attractive face?
A study conducted by Rantala and his team found that it actually has a lot to do with
fat percentage.
The men who participated in the study perceived female faces with a certain amount of facial
fat to be attractive.
Faces that had either too little or too much fat were considered less attractive.
Why?
Scientists speculate it may have to do with ingrained perceptions of health.
Biology is weird!
Speaking of faces, one thing you may want to think twice about is facial piercings.
A 2012 study found that both women and men who had facial piercings were rated by participants
as less attractive than those who did not have piercings.
In fact, men with piercings ranked even lower than women.
It may come down to who you want to attract, though: participants who considered themselves
open to experience- and sensation-seeking were more favorable towards facial piercings.
So if you're looking for an adventurous thrill-seeker, a nose ring might be the way to go.
Men like smart women — or do they?
Three recent studies showed that while men said they found intelligent, educated women
to be more attractive, it didn't play out that way in reality.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Jenna Birch, author of The Love Gap: A Radical
Plan to Win in Life and Love, explained
"There are a lot of pros to smart, independent career women.
They have that second paycheck; they're intellectually in the same plane and they are similarly educated.
[...] But when it came time to close that distance and men had to interact with these
women face-to-face, they started to lose interest."
"Listen, you little wiseacre.
I'm smart, you're dumb!"
So why does this happen?
Birch said it stems from, quote, "ingrained gender roles," where men feel societal pressure
to provide for their partner.
So if the woman can provide for herself, some men feel emasculated or inferior, while others
may feel competitive.
The world doesn't make it easy, does it.
Everyone knows that stress is unhealthy.
"AAAAAH!
I'm sorry.
I guess I'm stressed."
But did you know stress can also be a literal turn off?
Yes, according to a study by evolutionary biologist Markus Rantala, the higher a woman's
stress hormones, the lower attractiveness rating male participants gave her.
Why?
Rantala explained to Science Nordic,
"Stress hormones inhibit the female sex hormone, and if the stress level is very high, it can
make the woman infertile."
So stress can turn off your reproductive system, which then turns off men.
Rantala said,
"Our study shows that if a woman wishes to look attractive, she should try to keep her
stress levels down."
Which is pretty hard to do, now that we're so stressed out from this video telling us
why we're unattractive!
Thanks a lot, science!
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