Defensiveness in Exhibitionists

Focuses on the excessive defensiveness and the psychodynamic factors that typify many exhibitionists. After reviewing some of the literature describing the marked guardedness of these offenders, a detailed discussion follows of the Rorschach protocol of an exhibitionist revealing his core emotional conflicts. These test results illustrate the value of the Rorschach in eliciting material that in many cases would be difficult to obtain because of these patients characteristically suspicious and defensive stance concerning their offense and their personal lives. The case demonstrates the significant role of psychological testing in the forensic process, particularly for defensive, less verbal, and unpsychologically-minded offenders.     

The sexual preferences of incest offenders.

Inclusive fitness theory suggests that discriminative solicitude and inbreeding avoidance are important mechanisms regulating parent-children interactions. From an inclusive fitness perspective, sex with one's biological children is paradoxical. The authors hypothesized that incest can occur when these mechanisms are not activated (e.g., if a father is uninvolved in child rearing) or are overwhelmed by another factor, such as pedophilic interest. They predicted that biological fathers, who presumably have been the most involved in the rearing of their victims, would show greater phallometrically measured pedophilic interest than would other incest offenders against children (e.g., grandfathers, uncles, stepfathers). The prediction was not supported. A testable alternative hypothesis to explain biological father incest is presented and the importance of assessing pedophilic interest among incest offenders is discussed.     

Partner preferences across sexual orientations and biological sex

This study examined how partner preferences differ across interpersonal contexts (romantic attachment and relationship expectations) based on sexuality and biological sex. Participants completed measures of attachment and behavioral expectations for their romantic partners, cross‐sex friends, and same‐sex friends. The attachment anxiety results revealed an effect of sexuality: Single heterosexuals scored higher for their cross‐sex friends than same‐sex friends, single lesbian/gay individuals scored higher for same‐sex friends than cross‐sex friends, and bisexuals' attachment anxiety was equal regardless of friends' biological sex. The behavioral expectation results revealed an effect of biological sex indicating that, regardless of sexuality, women are preferred over men for emotional/social needs. Finally, an interaction revealed that lesbians have higher expectations for their girlfriends/wives than straight men have for theirs.     

Color preferences according to gender and sexual orientation

The present study was undertaken to verify findings surrounding sex differences in color preferences, and to extend this realm of inquiry by looking for possible differences in color preferences associated with sexual orientation. Based on a large sample of North American college students, significant gender differences were found, with the main difference being a greater preference for shades of blue by males than by females. Females, on the other hand, tended to be more evenly divided than males between preferring both green and blue. Regarding sexual orientation, we found no significant differences between heterosexuals and homosexual/bisexuals of either gender. In other words, male and female homosexuals/bisexuals exhibited essentially the same configuration of color preferences as did their heterosexual counterparts.     

Variable preferences for sexual dimorphism in stature (SDS): Further evidence for an adjustment in relation to own height

In contemporary Western populations, some physical characteristics are sexually dimorphic, and it is known that these traits also affect human mate preferences. Height is one such characteristic, and evidence suggests that females prefer taller over shorter males, indeed, taller males have been found to have greater reproductive success. However, relative height is also important with ‘Sexual Dimorphism in Stature’ (SDS) calculated as male height/female height. Pawlowski (2003) showed that people adjust their preferences for SDS in relation to their own height in order to increase their potential pool of partners. The aim of the present study was to replicate Pawlowski’s study on a larger sample of participants, and to investigate the universality of the reported preference adjustment within European societies. We present data of 1102 men and women from three countries (Germany, Austria, and the UK) that confirm Pawlowski’s original data on a Polish sample. Moreover, the mechanism of an adjustment of SDS preferences in relation to own height was found in all three countries, suggesting that height dependent partner preference is a genuine feature in Western societies.     

Female condition influences preferences for sexual dimorphism in faces of male humans (Homo sapiens)

In some species, female condition correlates positively with preferences for male secondary sexual traits. Women's preferences for sexually dimorphic characteristics in male faces (facial masculinity) have recently been reported to covary with self-reported attractiveness. As women's attractiveness has been proposed to signal reproductive condition, the findings in human (Homo sapiens) and other species may reflect similar processes. The current study investigated whether the covariation between condition and preferences for masculinity would generalize to 2 further measures of female attractiveness: other-rated facial attractiveness and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). Women with high (unattractive) WHR and/or relatively low other-rated facial attractiveness preferred more "feminine" male faces when choosing faces for a long-term relationship than when choosing for a short-term relationship, possibly reflecting diverse tactics in female mate choice.     

Adolescents’ preferences for sexual dimorphism are influenced by relative exposure to male and female faces

Exposure to a particular population of faces can increase ratings of the normality and attractiveness of similar-looking faces. Such exposure can also refine the perceived boundaries of that face population, such that other faces are more readily perceived as dissimilar. We predicted that relatively less exposure to opposite-sex faces, as experienced by children at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools, would decrease ratings of the attractiveness of sexual dimorphism in opposite-sex faces (that is, boys at single-sex schools would show a decreased preference for feminised faces, and girls at single-sex schools would show a decreased preference for masculinised faces). Consistent with this prediction, girls at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools demonstrated significantly stronger preferences for facial femininity in both male and female faces. Boys at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools demonstrated marginally stronger preferences for facial masculinity in male faces, but did not differ in their ratings of female faces. These effects were attenuated among some single-sex school pupils by the presence of adolescent opposite-sex siblings. These data add to the evidence that long-term exposure to a particular face population can influence judgements of other faces, and contribute to our understanding of the factors leading to individual differences in face preferences.     

Adolescents’ preferences for sexual dimorphism are influenced by relative exposure to male and female faces

Exposure to a particular population of faces can increase ratings of the normality and attractiveness of similar-looking faces. Such exposure can also refine the perceived boundaries of that face population, such that other faces are more readily perceived as dissimilar. We predicted that relatively less exposure to opposite-sex faces, as experienced by children at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools, would decrease ratings of the attractiveness of sexual dimorphism in opposite-sex faces (that is, boys at single-sex schools would show a decreased preference for feminised faces, and girls at single-sex schools would show a decreased preference for masculinised faces). Consistent with this prediction, girls at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools demonstrated significantly stronger preferences for facial femininity in both male and female faces. Boys at single-sex compared with mixed-sex schools demonstrated marginally stronger preferences for facial masculinity in male faces, but did not differ in their ratings of female faces. These effects were attenuated among some single-sex school pupils by the presence of adolescent opposite-sex siblings. These data add to the evidence that long-term exposure to a particular face population can influence judgements of other faces, and contribute to our understanding of the factors leading to individual differences in face preferences.     

Loss context enhances preferences for generosity but reduces preferences for honesty: Evidence from a combined behavioural-computational approach

The current literature has revealed mixed evidence on whether loss (vs. gain) context promotes or curtails human prosociality. The current study (N=96) aimed to address this issue by examining whether gain/loss context has distinct effects on different prosocial preferences combining computational modelling with Dictator Game and Message Game. These interactive games allow for dissociating preferences for generosity and honesty, which have been respectively associated with intuitive and deliberative systems. Our behavioural and computational modelling results indicate that loss context enhances concerns for generosity but reduces concerns for honesty. These findings support an account under the framework of dual process model asserting that loss facilitates intuitive responses during social decision-making, regardless of whether they are prosocial or proself. The current findings reconcile previous debates on the relationship between loss-gain context and human prosociality and shed light on the design of institutions to promote human prosocial behaviours.     

Trichotomous preferences for gambles

Let G_X be the set of all gambles on a set X of decision outcomes. Trichotomous preferences divide G_X into three disjoint subsets, viz., the set P⁺ of preferable gambles, the set P⁰ of indifferent gambles, and the set P^- of unpreferable gambles. Those preference comparisons are made against the status quo, i.e., the do-nothing alternative. This paper presents and discusses dyadic representations of such trichotomous preferences and identifies necessary and sufficient axioms for the existence of those representations.     

Reasons for sequence preferences

Much research shows that when it comes to preferences over sequences of money, such as a monthly paycheck, people do not always maximize present value. Rather, they often choose the lower‐valued of a pair of sequences, especially when it has attractive properties such as an increasing trend. To unearth the reasons for sequence preferences we conducted a verbal‐protocol analysis of choices between money sequences, including lifetime and one‐year earnings and one‐year lottery winnings, as well as lifetime health sequences. Participants thought aloud while choosing between visual representations of sequences. Their verbalizations contained reference to a wide range of previously hypothesized, as well as new, reasons for choice. These reasons were also correlated in sensible ways with the choices made. There was some evidence of solid economic reasoning (which we called maximization), although this was largely restricted to choices for one‐year earnings. More commonly, respondents did not distinguish between earnings and consumption, and thought about money as if they would automatically spend it at the rate it was received. This meant the most frequently given reason was what we called appropriateness—how well the money received at a given point matched the desired consumption at that point. Other common explanations include the expectedness of a sequence (we argue this is mediated by appropriateness), the way that parts of the sequence constitute reference points for other parts, and the ease with which incoming money can be managed (convenience). Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Female preferences for male physiques

A pair comparison design was used to gather information concerning female preferences for male physiques. By independently varying the size of one of four body areas (the arms, upper trunk, lower trunk, or legs), 19 male silhouettes were constructed. Thurstone scale values indicating relative preferences among these silhouettes were generated for each of 64 female subjects. Correlations were calculated between subject variables, e.g., own physical appearance, personal habits, male and female sex-role attitudes, etc., and the underlying preference factors for male physiques. While the bulk of the significant correlations were low, accounting for approximately 5–10% of the variance, the general trend of the results suggest that women's preferences for male physiques can be summarized in terms of feminine and masculine sex-role stereotypes. Women who are traditionally feminine show a preference for traditionally masculine physiques, i.e., tapering V physiques, while less traditional women express more nonstereotyped preferences. It is also suggested that a female's preferences for male physiques may serve as an initial delimiter in narrowing the field of eligibles in heterosexual pairing.     

Predicting treatment preferences for agoraphobia

Fifty-one university students completed two questionnaires: (1) The Millon Behavioral Health Inventory (MBHI) and (2) a questionnaire evaluating Ss' ratings of acceptability and effectiveness of five treatments for agoraphobia (Norton, Allen and Hilton, 1983a). The results showed that the Ss rated the three psychological treatments as more effective and acceptable than the two drug treatments. A discriminant function analysis, using the coping style measures of the MBHI and the Ss' ratings of acceptability and effectiveness of tranquilizers as predictor variables, correctly classified 78% of the Ss as to which psychological treatment they rated as more acceptable and effective for agoraphobia.     

Infant preferences for attractive faces: a cognitive explanation.

Research on infant face perception has shown that infants' preferences for attractive faces exist well before socialization from parents, peers, and the media can affect these preferences. Four studies assessed a cognitive explanation for the development of attractiveness preferences: cognitive averaging and infant preferences for mathematically averaged faces, or prototypes. Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated that both adults and 6-month-old infants prefer prototypical, mathematically averaged faces. Studies 3 and 4 demonstrated that 6-month-olds can abstract the central tendency from a group of naturalistic faces. Taken together, the studies suggest that infants' preferences for attractive faces can be explained by general information-processing mechanisms.     

Bibliotherapy for low sexual desire: evidence for effectiveness

This study examines the effectiveness of bibliotherapy for low sexual desire among women, which is the most frequent sexual concern brought to counselors. Forty-five women responded to an advertisement for participation in a study on low sexual desire and were assigned to either the intervention or the wait-list control group. The intervention group completed the Hurlbert Index of Sexual Desire (HISD; Apt & Hurlbert, 1992) and the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI; R. Rosen et al., 2000), read the self-help book under study in 6 weeks, and completed the measures a second time. The control group completed the same measures 6 weeks apart. Results demonstrated that the intervention group made statistically greater gains over time as compared with the control group on measures of sexual desire (HISD and FSFI Desire subscale), sexual arousal (FSFI Arousal subscale), sexual satisfaction (FSFI Satisfaction subscale), and overall sexual functioning (FSFI Total Score). A subset of participants in the intervention group participated in a 7-week follow-up study, and these participants maintained their gains in sexual desire and overall sexual functioning. Findings have important implications for future research on the efficacy of bibliotherapy generally and for low sexual desire specifically. Results also have vital implications for the treatment of low sexual desire.