Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest can be explained by sociosexual orientation and men projecting their own interest onto women

Citation

Lee AJ, Sidari MJ, Murphy SC, Sherlock JM & Zietsch BP (2020) Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest can be explained by sociosexual orientation and men projecting their own interest onto women. Psychological Science, 31 (2), pp. 184-192. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797619900315

Abstract
Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest have been well documented; however, it is unclear whether this cognitive bias could be explained by other factors. In the current study, 1226 participants (578 men, 630 women) participated in a speed-dating study, where participants rated their sexual interest in each other as well as the sexual interest they perceived from their partners. Consistent with previous findings, we found that men tended to overperceive sexual interest from their partners, while women tended to underperceive sexual interest. However, this sex difference becomes negligible when considering potential mediators, such as the raters’ sociosexual orientation, and raters projecting their own levels of sexual interest onto their partners. These findings challenge the popular notion that sex differences in misperceptions in sexual interest have evolved as a specialised adaptation due to different selection pressures in men and women.

Keywords
Attraction; Sociosexual Orientation; Speed-Dating; Mean-Level Bias; Tracking Accuracy; Error Management Theory

Journal
Psychological Science: Volume 31, Issue 2

People

Dr Anthony Lee

Lecturer in Psychology, Psychology