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The thrill of loving a dominant partner: Relationships between preference for a dominant mate, sensation seeking, and trait anxiety
Author(s) -
GIEBEL GILDA,
MORAN JAMES,
SCHAWOHL ANNE,
WEIERSTALL ROLAND
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
personal relationships
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.81
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1475-6811
pISSN - 1350-4126
DOI - 10.1111/pere.12079
Subject(s) - sensation seeking , psychology , preference , boredom , trait , trait anxiety , assortative mating , social psychology , big five personality traits , anxiety , personality , mate choice , sexual selection , developmental psychology , mating , ecology , psychiatry , computer science , programming language , economics , biology , microeconomics , zoology
This study investigates whether particular personality traits predict the desire to choose a dominant partner. Specifically examined are the traits of sensation seeking and trait anxiety as predictors of the preference for a dominant female/male partner. Sixty‐eight men and 104 women ( N = 172) participated in an online survey. Individuals who avoid boredom and seek out exciting social activities have a stronger desire for a dominant partner. For female participants, we detected experience seeking and trait anxiety as additional factors associated with the preference for a dominant partner. Women higher in trait anxiety and lower in experience seeking have a higher preference for a dominant man. Gender differences are interpreted with regard to sexual selection theory and individual differences with respect to the theory of assortative mating.