Men can 'laugh women into bed' says psychologists

Men really can laugh women into bed, because a sense of humour makes them seem more intelligent, psychologists have found.

A new study shows that women think that funny men are smarter and more likely to be honest than more dour counterparts.

Although studies have shown that humour is not linked to intelligence, researchers believe that the findings could be the reason why so many lonely heart ads placed by women list GSOH (good sense of humour) as a prerequisite for a partner.

Women have evolved to find intelligence an attractive quality because it suggests that a man will be a good provider for her and her children, the researchers believe.

Kristofor McCarty, from Northumbria University, who led the study, said: "A quick browse of lonely-hearts ads will confirm that women look for a good sense of humour in a potential partner – our research may explain why this is the case.

"The findings provide evidence that women use humour as an indication of a guy's intelligence.

"Intelligence is a very attractive quality as a clever man should be more able to provide resources for his offspring.

"But guys be warned: not just any gag will do. We discovered that the humour must be genuinely funny for the man to be judged as more intelligent."

James Corden, the comedy star of BBC hit Gavin and Stacey, has said that being funny helped him to attract women from his teenage years onwards.

“My weight was never a concern for me. I could always talk to them and make them laugh, so they tended to overlook my physical imperfections,” said Corden, who is currently dating actress Sheridan Smith.

To rate the attractiveness of a sense of humour in the study, 45 heterosexual women were asked to read shorts descriptions of themselves compiled by 20 men, 10 of which were scored as extremely funny and 10 as only slightly funny.

The women were than asked how intelligent and honest they thought that the men were and how likely they would be to go on to develop a friendship or a long-term relationship with them.

The findings, to be presented at the British Psychological Society Annual Conference in Brighton on Wednesday, show that men who used the funniest descriptions of themselves were thought to be significantly more intelligent than those who weren't as witty.

The women in the study also judged the men who had a good sense of humour as more honest and said that they would be more likely to become friends with them.

Funnier men were also seen as a better catch for a long-term relationship, according to the findings.

While women appear to prefer a men who makes them laugh, the psychologists say that previous studies have shown that the same does not hold true when the sexes are reversed - and men are not more attracted to funny girls.

What makes women hot? Body or Face?

Is it the face or the body which attracts you? Does this attraction change based on whether it is for a long-term relationship or short-term relationship?

Breast size, body fat, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), symmetry, volume-to-height ratio, foot size are some of the factors which have been studied for their impact on attractiveness. However very few studies analyzed these factors in relation, as most studies analyzed just one factor at a time. Of the very few studies which analyzed these factors in relationship, a researcher proposed that men could use women’s WHR as a ‘wide first-pass filter,’ screening out those women who may be unhealthy, have low reproductive capability, or be pregnant. However, a different group of researchers found no evidence for such a role. Researchers also found that the minimum acceptable levels for a number of factors increased with the length of relationship sought, but each factor was different in the way it increased and was different for each sex.

The recent research by Dr.Currie has tried to find whether it is the face or body which has more influence on attractiveness and also see its variation with respect to the purpose (long-term vs short-term relationship). All past studies addressing a similar focus had limitations of very few participants, artificially modified images, clothing influence etc. Dr.Currie and team recruited ‘models’ and got a close-up face shot & a full length shot with the models wearing only underwear. All possible care was taken to make all the photos the same. Some of those efforts were – maintaining the same neutral expression, face shot having a frame around the face to cover the hair, body photos showing from just under the chin to the knees while eliminating any long hair below the chin & all the underwear colored black, normalizing the face shots based on interpupillary distance, camera & models at the exact same positions etc. 260 participants (127 men & 133 women) then rated pictures of the opposite sex, anonymously over the internet. Each of them were randomly assigned and told to the rate the picture either for a long term relationship or a short term relationship. Each participant got 10 body images to rate in a sequence, followed by the same 10 face images in a different random order. Also first rating the body or face images was randomized. Next they got the both the body and face images (same 10 models but in a different random order). However, the body & face photos were placed side by side (not with the head on top of the body) to be consistent with the individual body or face photos rated earlier. Placing the head on top of the body, would make the face smaller and also disclose other traits not interested for this study. To validate this form of attractiveness rating, a different smaller group of participants rated the full length photos and those ratings showed strong correlation to the ratings given by the actual participants to the side by side configuration.

Statistical analysis of men rating women indicated that, even though both the body and face ratings were significant positive predictors of the ratings given to the combined images, the face ratings were stronger predictors of the combined ratings. It was also observed that the ratings for combined images was slightly higher for short term relationships as compared to long term relationships. One other significant observation – when the short term and long term relationship data were analyzed separately, the body ratings stood as more significant predictors to the combined ratings than face ratings, for short term relationships. In the case of females rating men, similar to men – the body and face ratings were both significant predictors with the face ratings being very strong predictors as compared to the body ratings. However, females ratings for men did not show any difference under the short term and long term decisions.

Even though this study seems like finding obvious answers, it is always a confusion whether men give more importance to the face or body. So statistically, this study proves that men and women approach long-term relationships (attractiveness) in a similar fashion ie, paying more attention to the face. However, for short-term relationships, men are liberal in rating women for attractiveness (this coincides with an earlier study which tells that – minimum acceptable levels for a number of factors increased with the length of relationship sought) and also give more importance to the body than the face. The researchers suggest further research to find why men give more importance to the body for short-term relationships, while we think it is obvious!

Top Ten “Women who grow on you”

This list is all about women who initially don’t seem attractive, but after a while grow on you, like moss on a stone, or mold on uneaten bread.

10) Susan Sarandon

"Charming"

“Wait a minute”, I hear you say. “Susan Sarandon? SUSAN SARANDON??? No! She’s as likely to grow on you as a pine tree is to grow in the Sahara desert!”. Oh yeah? Well, I refer you to the scene in her 1988 film ‘Bull Durham’ with Kevin Costner where she’s strutting around in suspenders getting all hot and bothered. As one source, who wanted to remain anonymous, said, “For a minute she was totally (charming)” - for the benefit of our more sensitive readers, I was obliged to alter the last word in that quote.

9) Maya Rudolph

Famed for her comedic talent as an actress on Saturday Night Live, Maya swoops into our list at number 9. At first glance her features are not the most pleasing to the eye, but with the passing of time like a fine wine - she is “slowly getting attractive”. You only have to look at pictures from her debut season on SNL in 1999 and compare them to her last appearance on the show in 2008 to see that Maya’s attractiveness has increased over the years - and the reason behind you suddenly finding yourself inexplicably attracted to her!

8) Kirsten Dunst

The facts of the matter when it comes to Kirsten is that she is more than the sum of her parts. Whilst it would be impossible to suggest that she is ugly, Kirsten is definitely not playing with the big girls when it comes to looks. In a Transformers v Spider Man show down, Megan Fox would win. But to dismiss Kirsten would be a great folly as anyone who saw her turn in Spider Man the movies will tell you. In that scene when she kissed an upside down Spider Man in the rain…in that top. She definitely grew on a whole legion of men.

7) The “ugly girl” in your place of work

"I'm sorry could you show me how the photocopier works please?"

Every office has an ugly girl. When you first lay eyes on her, you know that she is so beneath your standards that, not only is she not in your league, she’s not even playing the same sport. But, with each passing day as you work together, she inexplicably gets more and more attractive to the point that you start imagining scenarios involving broken photocopiers.

6) Khloe Kardashian

It would be a bit unfair to call Khloe Kardashian the ugly sister, but when your sisters are the drop dead gorgeous Kim and smoking hot Kourtney, that is the unfortunate situation you find yourself in. It doesn’t help either that her weight tends to fluctuate between a little bit of meat (in a good way) on her bones, and all meat no bones - if you get what I mean. Some people have also pointed out, that from certain angles she looks a bit like Jaws from James Bond. Known for her appearances on her reality show Keeping Up With The Khardashians she was often in the background but out of the three sisters she was always the one that you thought you might actually have a chance with, and for that reason alone she definitely grows on you!

5) Helena Bonham Carter (particularly in ‘Fight Club’)

Corsets = sexy

Despite often looking like a diseased-ridden peasant from medieval times with a phobia of soap, water, and hairbrushes, her laissez-faire attitude to love triangles with imaginary people in ‘Fight Club’, and the fact that she might look quite good after a shower, means HBC is a shoe-in for this list.

4) Sarah Beeny - star of ‘Property Ladder’ (the U.K. original, not the U.S. version)

Two reasons

For all those international fans of ‘The Daily Different’ who might be unfamiliar with Sarah, the picture really captures her essence. Commenting on how her house renovation show has granted her sex symbol status in the U.K., she said “Men are attracted to me because I’m bossy and opinionated… Men like that, it’s the dominatrix thing”. WRONG! While there are two BIG reasons why men like Sarah, it’s not for being bossy and opinionated.

3) Peg Bundy from ‘Married with Children’

Personality goes a long way

Why hello Mrs. Bundy! Normally, bouffant hair that looks like it’s been trapped in a 1970s time warp is a massive turn off, but it’s amazing what a great personality can do. (By the way, in my dictionary “great personality” refers to a seven letter word beginning with “b” that rhymes with “vests” )

2) Wilma Flintstone

Yabba Dabba Do!

All the guys prefer Betty Rubble right? And even Fred sometimes thinks that he married the wrong chick. But with her penchant for short dresses, showcasing her impressive pins, there’s no doubt that she was what made Fred shout “Yabba Dabba Doo” every week.

1) Elaine from ‘Seinfeld’ (aka Julia Louis-Dreyfus)

Check out Elaine!

A quintessential example of a woman who, at first glance, flies low under the radar. Yet, the more you see of her, the more you get it. And the more you get it, the more you realize that she would get it!