I Have, Therefore I Love: Status Quo Preference in Mate Choice

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GÜNAYDIN G., SELÇUK E., YILMAZ C., Hazan C.

PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN, vol.44, no.4, pp.589-600, 2018 (SSCI) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 44 Issue: 4
  • Publication Date: 2018
  • Doi Number: 10.1177/0146167217746339
  • Journal Name: PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.589-600
  • Keywords: status quo bias, endowment effect, decision making, romantic relationships, mate-choice trade-offs, ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS, CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS, LOSS AVERSION, INVESTMENT MODEL, IDEAL STANDARDS, SEX-DIFFERENCES, BIAS, SELF, SATISFACTION, COMMITMENT
  • Middle East Technical University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Decades of research indicate that individuals adhere to existing states (status quo bias) and value them more (endowment effect). The present work is the first to investigate status quo preference within the context of trade-offs in mate choice. Across seven studies (total N = 1,567), participants indicated whether they would prefer remaining with a current partner possessing a particular set of traits (e.g., high trustworthiness, low attractiveness) or switching to an alternative partner possessing opposite traits. Preference for a given trait was highest when the individual representing the status quo (one's romantic partner or an interaction partner) possessed that trait. Concerns about hurting the partner, ambiguity avoidance, and biased construal of the partner and the alternative predicted status quo preference and disapproval of the current partner by network members eliminated this effect. These findings indicate that when it comes to matters of the heart, we tend to love what we currently have.