Researchers Think Hot Woman + Less Hot Guy Works Best

Most less-hot guys seem to like this combo, too.

Jeanna Bryner, LiveScience Staff Writer, reports on “Why Beautiful Women Marry Less Attractive Men”

New research reveals couples in which the wife is better looking than her husband are more positive and supportive than other match-ups.

Research? Like, oh, say, looking out a window???

The reason, researchers suspect, is that men place great value on beauty, whereas women are more interested in having a supportive husband.

That’s a little general. Some women want a man who can provide for her and their children. Some women want a man with money, power, or fame because they are materialistic, lazy, and hungry for attention. Some women want other things.

Past research has shown that individuals with comparable stunning looks are attracted to each other and once they hook up they report greater relationship
satisfaction. These studies, however, are mainly based on new couples, showing that absolute beauty is important in the earliest stages of couple-hood, said lead researcher James McNulty of the University of Tennessee.

If you’re just looking for sex, it is never going to be better than the first three months. Not unless you marry someone who continues to be enthusiastic about making love late into the marriage, willing to practice, practice, practice and try new things.

But the role of physical attractiveness in well-established partnerships, such as marriage, is somewhat of a mystery.

The new study, published in the February issue of the Journal of Family Psychology, reveals looks continue to matter beyond that initial attraction, though in a different way.

If you want kids, you know your kids will have an easier time in life if they are good-looking (only really good looking people who have been good-looking their entire lives deny this), and they are more likely to be good-looking if your spouse is good-looking.

Researchers videotaped as each spouse discussed with their partner a personal problem for 10 minutes. The tapes were analyzed for whether partners were supportive of spouses' issues, which included goals to eat healthier, to land a new job and to exercise more often.

Hmmm, well, if we’re talking about whether someone is fat or not (eating, exercise), that’s another dimension. People want their partners to take care of themselves. Men literally can’t function sexually if they’re not turned on, and physical beauty is often a large part of that. If a woman is relying on her husband to provide for her, she has an interest in his health, because the healthier he is, the easier it will for him to provide.

"A negative husband would've said, 'This is your problem, you deal with it,'" McNulty said, "versus 'Hey, I'm here for you; what do you want me to do?; how can I help you?'"

Marriage should not be sibling rivalry. It should be two people looking out for each other and trying to bring joyful conditions to the life of the other.

Overall, wives and husbands behaved more positively when the woman was better looking. The finding "seems very reasonable," said Dan Ariely, a professor of behavioral economics at MIT's Program in Media Arts and Sciences and Sloan School of Management. "Men are very sensitive to women's attractiveness. Women seem to be sensitive to men's height and salary," said Ariely, who was not involved in the recent study.

In couples with more attractive husbands, both partners were less supportive of one another. McNulty suggests wives mirror, in some ways, the level of support they get from husbands.

It would be worth noting how they ended up together. If a man marries a less attractive woman because she “accidentally” got pregnant while they had a drunken encounter, or because she was sexually enthusiastic or talented or eager and that changed after she had her wedding cake, then the guy is likely to be unsupportive because of resentment.

"The husband who's less physically attractive than his wife is getting something more than maybe he can expect to get," McNulty told LiveScience. "He's getting something better than he's providing at that level. So he's going to work hard to maintain that relationship."

Maybe. But most men know either explicitly or in the back of their minds that even ugly men can get really hot wives if they are rich, powerful, or famous.

Physical attractiveness of husbands is not as important to women, the researchers suggest. Rather, wives are looking for supportive husbands, they say.

Repeating the obvious.

I'll let the women in on a little "secret". Yes, men care about physical beauty. Yes, there is a wider range of that than media portrayals might lead one to believe. But men will quickly tire of even the most attractive woman if she is a shrew, a nag, irresponsible, unkind, or cold. Quality men who are looking for a relationship (not casual fornication) will prefer a plain looking woman over such "beauties" if she is kind; supportive; enthusiastic, playful, and eager when it comes to lovemaking; and has other good qualities. Such a woman will become more attractive to a good man than any centerfold.