Influence of conception risk and sociosexuality on female attraction to male red

An experiment was conducted to test the moderating roles of ovulatory status and sociosexuality on female attraction to male red. Female participants were shown a picture of a man surrounded by a red or gray border, and then reported their sexual desire toward the man and their perceptions of his general likeability. The results indicated that women at times of high conception probability reported stronger sexual desire for the man surrounded by a red, relative to gray, border; this pattern was not found for women at times of low conception probability. The effect was significant only when the categorical “fertile window” (days 9–14) was calculated using the forward counting method from last menstrual onset. Color did not influence ratings of general likeability, and sociosexuality did not moderate the influence of color on participants' reports of sexual desire or their perceptions of general likeability. The results suggest that women tend to have a stronger sensitivity to red stimuli when their likelihood of conception is greatest. The increased sexual desire for men in red may be due to preferences for healthy and dominant men with high status.