An experimental study investigated the combined effects of participant’s gender and an opposite-sex target’s sexual history (SH) and physical attractiveness (PA) on the perceived desirability of that target, participant’s willingness to exchange personal information, intention to have sex, perceived riskiness, and intentions to engage in safer-sex behaviors should intercourse occur with the target. A total of 280 college students (140 men, 140 women) completed self-administered questionnaires immediately after viewing the target’s photograph and biographic information. Results indicated that participants, especially men, overrelied on irrelevant partner characteristics such as PA and underused the more relevant SH information in making judgments about risk and probable future behavior with the target. Supplementary path analyses highlighted the role of desirability of the target as a proximal cause of both lower risk perceptions and weakened intentions to take precautionary actions. The need to more fully address motivational factors in future research and prevention efforts is discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Adams, G. R. (1982). Physical attractiveness. In A. G. Miller (Ed.), In the eye of the beholder: Contemporary issues in stereotyping (pp. 253-304). New York: Praeger.
2.
Aronson, E. , Fried, C. B., & Stone, J. (1991). Overcoming denial and increasing the intention to use condoms through the induction of hypocrisy. American Journal of Public Health, 81, 1636-1638.
3.
Bentler, P. M. (1995). EQS structural equations program manual. Encino, CA: Multivariate Software.
4.
Bentler, P. M. , & Bonett, D. G. (1980). Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance structures. Psychological Bulletin, 88, 588-606.
5.
Berndt, T. J. , & Heller, K. A. (1986). Gender stereotypes and social inferences: A developmental study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50, 889-898.
6.
Berry, D. S. (1991a). Accuracy in social perception: Contributions of facial and vocal information. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 298-307.
7.
Berry, D. S. (1991b). Attractive faces are not all created equal: Joint effects of facial babyishness and attractiveness on social perception. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17, 523-531.
8.
Berscheid, E. , & Walster, E. (1974). Physical attractiveness. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 7, pp. 157-215).
9.
Bodenhausen, G. V. , Kramer, G. P., & Susser, K. (1994). Happiness and stereotypic thinking in social judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66, 621-632.
10.
Bollen, K. A. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables. New York: John Wiley.
11.
Bower, G. H. (1981). Mood and memory. American Psychologist, 36, 129-148.
12.
Branscombe, N. R. , & Cohen, B. M. (1991). Motivation and complexity levels as determinants of heuristic use in social judgment. In J. P. Forgas (Ed.), Emotion and social judgments. International series in experimental social psychology (pp. 145-160). Oxford, England: Pergamon.
13.
Brown, J. D. , Novick, N. J., Lord, K. A., & Richards, J. M. (1992). When Gulliver travels: Social context, psychological closeness, and self-appraisals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, 717-727.
14.
Cliff, N. (1983). Some cautions concerning the application of causal modeling methods. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 18, 115-126.
15.
Cohen, J. , & Cohen, P. (1983). Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences. Hillside, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
16.
Cooper, M. L. , Peirce, R. S., & Huselid, R. F. (1994). Substance use and sexual risk taking among black adolescents and white adolescents. Health Psychology13, 251-256.
17.
Dawson, D. , Cynamon, M., & Fitti, J. (1987). AIDS knowledge and attitudes. Provisional data from the National Health Interview Survey: United States, August 1987. National Center for Health Statistics. Advance Data, 146, 1-10.
18.
Dion, K. , Berscheid, E., & Walster, E. (1972). What is beautiful is good. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 24, 285-290.
19.
Eagly, A. H. , Ashmore, R. D., Makhijani, M. G., & Longo, L. C. (1991). What is beautiful is good, but...: A meta-analytic review of research on the physical attractiveness stereotype. Psychological Bulletin, 110, 109-128.
20.
Edgar, T. , Freimuth, V. S., Hammond, S. L., McDonald, D. A., & E. L. Fink (1992). Strategic sexual communication: Condom use resistance and response. Health Communication, 4, 83-104.
21.
Edwards, W. (1954). The theory of decision making. Psychological Bulletin, 51, 380-417.
22.
Feingold, A. (1990). Gender differences in effects of physical attractiveness on romantic attraction: A comparison across five research paradigms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59, 981-993.
23.
Feingold, A. (1992). Good-looking people are not what we think. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 304-341.
24.
Fisher, J. D. , & Fisher, W. A. (1992). Changing AIDS-risk behavior. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 455-474.
25.
Furby, L. & Beyth-Marom, R. (1992). Risk-taking in adolescents: A decision-making perspective. Developmental Review, 12, 1-44.
26.
Gnepp, J. , & Chilamkurti, C. (1988). Children’s use of personality attributions to predict other people’s emotional behavioral reactions. Child Development, 59, 743-754.
27.
Gold, R. S. , Skinner, M. J., Grants, P. J., & Plummer, D. C. (1991). Situational factors and thought processes associated with unprotected intercourse in gay men. Psychology and Health, 5, 259-278.
28.
Goldman, J. A. , & Harlow, L. L. (1993). Self-perception variables that mediate AIDS-preventive behavior in college students. Health Psychology, 12, 489-498.
29.
Goodwin, R. (1990). Sex differences among partner preferences: Are the sexes really very similar?Sex Roles, 23, 501-513.
30.
Green, S. K. , Buchanan, D. R., & Heuer, S. K. (1984). Winners, losers, and choosers: A field investigation of dating initiation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 10, 502-511.
31.
Hagiwara, S. (1975). Visual versus verbal information in impression formation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32, 692-698.
32.
Hatfield, E. , & Sprecher, S. (1986). Mirror, mirror: The importance of looks in everyday life. Albany: State University of New York Press.
33.
Hayduk, L. A. (1987). Structural equation modeling with LISREL: Essentials and advances. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins Press.
34.
Helweg-Larsen, M. , & Collins, B. E. (1994). The UCLA multidimensional condom attitudes scale: Documenting the complex determinants of condom use in college students. Health Psychology, 13, 224-237.
35.
Homans, G. C. (1974). Social behavior: Its elementary forms. New York: Harcourt, Brace, & Jovanovich.
36.
Hoyt, L. L. , & Hudson, J. W. (1981). Personal characteristics important in mate preference among college students. Social Behavior and Personality, 9, 93-96.
37.
Ingham, R. , Woodcock, A., & Stenner, K. (1991). Getting to know you....Young people’s knowledge of their partners at first inter-course. Special Issue: Social dimensions of AIDS. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 1, 117-132.
38.
Jacoby, A. P. , & Williams, J. D. (1985). Effects of premarital sexual standards and behavior on dating and marriage desirability. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 47, 1059-1065.
39.
Johnson, B. T. (1991). Insights about attitudes: Meta-analytic perspectives. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17, 289-299.
40.
Johnson, D. J. , & Rusbult, C. E. (1989). Resisting temptation: Devaluation of alternative partners as a means of maintaining commitment in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 967-980.
41.
Keller, M. L. (1993). Why don’t young adults protect themselves against sexual transmission of HIV? Possible answers to a complex question. AIDS Education and Prevention, 5, 220-223.
42.
Kenrick, D. T. , Montello, D. R., Gutierres, S. E., & Trost, M. R. (1993). Effects of physical attractiveness on affect and perceptual judgments: When social comparison overrides social reinforcement. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19, 195-199.
43.
Klepinger, D. H. , Billy, J. O. G., Tanfer, K., & Grady, W. R. (1993). Perceptions of AIDS risk and severity and their association with risk-related behavior among U.S. men. Family Planning Perspectives, 25, 74-82.
44.
Mark, M. M. , & Miller M. L. (1986). The effects of sexual permissiveness, target gender, subject gender, and attitude toward women on social perception: In search of the double standard. Sex Roles, 15, 311-322.
45.
Marsh, H. W. , & Hocevar, D. (1985). Application of confirmatory factor analysis to the study of self-concept: First- and higher order factor models and their invariance across groups. Psychological Bulletin, 97, 562-582.
46.
Maticka-Tyndale, E. (1991a). Modification of sexual activities in the era of AIDS: A trend analysis of adolescent sexual activities. Youth and Society, 23, 31-49.
47.
Maticka-Tyndale, E. (1991b). Sexual scripts and AIDS prevention: Variations in adherence to safer-sex guidelines by heterosexual adolescents. Journal of Sex Research, 28, 45-66.
48.
Michaels, S. (1996). The prevalence of homosexuality in the United States. In R. P. Cabaj & T. S. Stein (Eds.), Textbook of homosexuality and mental health (pp. 43-63). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.
49.
Mischel, W. , Jeffery, K. M., & Patterson, C. J. (1974). The layman’s use of trait and behavioral information to predict behavior. Journal of Research in Personality, 8, 231-242.
50.
Oliver, M. B. , & Hyde, J. S. (1993). Gender differences in sexuality: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 114, 29-51.
51.
Pedhazur, E. J. (1997). Multiple regression in behavioral research. New York: Harcourt Brace.
52.
Riggio, R. E. , Widamen, K. F., Tucker, J. S., & Salinas, C. (1991). Beauty is more than skin deep: Components of attractiveness. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 12, 423-439.
53.
Ritts, V. , Patterson, M. L., & Tubbs, M. E. (1992). Expectations, impressions, and judgments of physically attractive students: A review. Review of Educational Research, 62, 413-426.
54.
Ross, L. , & Nisbett, R. E. (1991). The person and the situation: Perspectives of social psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill.
55.
Sacco, W. P. , Levine, B., Reed, D. L., & Thompson, K. (1991). Attitudes about condom use as an AIDS relevant behavior: Their factor structure and relation to condom use. Psychological Assessment: A Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 3, 265-272.
56.
Schwarz, N. , & Bless, H. (1991). Happy and mindless, but sad and smart? The impact of affective states on analytic reasoning. In J. P. Forgas (Ed.), Emotion and social judgments. International series in experimental social psychology (pp. 55-71). Oxford, England: Pergamon.
57.
Sell, R. L. , Wells, J. A., & Wypij, D. (1995). The prevalence of homosexual behavior in the United States, the United Kingdom and France: Results of national population-based samples. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 24, 235-248.
58.
Sigall, H. , & Landy, D. (1973). Radiating beauty: Effects of having a physically attractive partner on person perception. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 28, 218-224.
59.
Simpson, J. A. , & Gangestad, S. W. (1991). Individual differences in socio-sexuality: Evidence for convergent and discriminant validity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60, 870-883.
60.
Sinclair, R. C. , & Mark, M. M. (1995). The effects of mood states on judgmental accuracy: Processing strategy as a mechanism. Cognition and Emotion, 9, 417-438.
61.
Singh, D. (1993). Adaptive significance of female physical attractiveness: Role of waist-to-hip ratio. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 293-307.
62.
Sprecher, S. , McKinney, K., & Orbuch, T. L. (1987). Has the double standard disappeared?: An experimental test. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50, 24-31.
63.
Sprecher, S. , McKinney, K., & Orbuch, T. L. (1991). The effect of current sexual behavior on friendship, dating, and marriage desirability. Journal of Sex Research, 28, 387-408.
64.
Stephan, C. W. , & Stephan, W. G. (1990). Two social psychologies: An integrative approach. Homewood, IL: Dorsey.
65.
Stone, J. , Aronson, E., Crain, A. L., Winslow, M. P., & Fried, C. B. (1994). Inducing hypocrisy as a means of encouraging young adults to use condoms. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 20, 116-128.
66.
Stretch, R. H. , & Figley, C. R. (1980). Beauty and the boast: Predictions of interpersonal attraction in a dating experiment. Psychology—A Quarterly Journal of Human Behavior, 17, 35-43.
67.
Thornhill, R. , & Gangestad, S. W. (1993). Human facial beauty: Averageness, symmetry, and parasite resistance. Human Nature, 4, 237-269.
68.
Townsend, J. M. (1993). Sexuality and partner selection: Sex differences among college students. Ethology and Sociobiology, 14, 305-330.
69.
Townsend, J. M. , & Levy, G. D. (1990). Effects of potential partners’ costume and physical attractiveness on sexuality and partner selection. Journal of Psychology, 124, 371-389.
70.
Walsh, A. (1993). Love styles, masculinity/femininity, physical attractiveness and sexual behavior: A test of evolutionary theory. Ethology and Sociobiology, 14, 25-38.
71.
Weisman, C. S. , Nathanson, C. A., Ensminger, M., Teitelbaum, M. A., Robinson, J. C., & Plitcha, S. (1989). AIDS knowledge, perceived risk and prevention among adolescent clients of a family planning clinic. Family Planning Perspectives, 21, 213-217.
72.
Wilder, D. A. , & Simon, A. F. (1996). Incidental and integral affect as triggers of stereotyping. In R. M. Sorrentino & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Motivation and cognition. Vol. 3: The interpersonal context (pp. 397-419). New York: Guilford.
73.
Williams, S. S. , Kimble, D. L., Covell, N. H., Weiss, L. H., Newton, K. J., Fisher, J. D., & Fisher, W. A. (1992). College students use implicit personality theory instead of safer sex. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 921-933.
