Freakonomics

I'm reading Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner and came across something interesting that sort of relates to this blog.

In a section in the book about online dating sites, there was something that caught my eye:

[In talking about what traits on your profile you list get you the most responses] "The traits that do draw a big response, meanwhile, will not be a big surprise to anyone with even a passing knowledge of the sexes. In fact, the preferences expressed by online daters fit snugly with the most common stereotypes about men and women.
"For instance, men who say they want a long-term relationship do much better than men looking for an occasional lover. but women looking for an occasional lover do great. For men, a woman's looks are of paramount importance. For women, a man's income is terribly important. The richer a man is, the more e-mails he receives. But a woman's income appeal is a bell-shaped curve: men do not want to date low-earning women, but once a woman starts earning too much, they seem to be scared off. Men want to date students, artists, musicians, veterinarians, and celebrities (while avoiding secretaries, retirees, and women in the military and law enforcement). Women do want to date military men, policemen, and firemen (possibly the result of a 9/11 Effect, like the higher payments to Paul Feldman's bagel business), along with lawyers and financial executives. Woman avoid laborers, actors, students, and men who work in food services or hospitality. For men, being short is a big disadvantage (which is probably why so many lie about it), but weight doesn't much matter. for women, being overweight is deadly (which is probably why they lie). For a man, having red hair or curly hair is a downer, as is baldness--but a shaved head is okay. For a woman, salt-and-pepper hair is bad, while blond hair is very good. In the world of online dating, a headful of blond hair on a woman is worth about the same as having a college degree--and, with a $100 dye job versus a $100,000 tuition bill, and awful lot cheaper."


So, the conclusion that this book has is that at least when anonymous in online dating sites, men and woman are stereotypical in their attraction toward the opposite sex. Men want beautiful blonds who aren't making more money than them, and woman want powerful, tall men who are making lots of money.