Love is in the air ... if the statistics are right! Statistical analysis of behaviour is just about the polar opposite of
romance and spontaneity, but that hasn't stopped numerous scientists from analysing every aspect of
love, romance and relationships.
Here are a few of their findings...
1) Fear increases attractiveness
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| A Valentine's Day card optimised for effective results. |
This first scientific investigation was carried out on the Capilano Suspension Bridge (a wobbly, creaky bridge which can be quite nerve-wracking on a windy day), and was designed to investigate the effect of fear on a person's tendency to feel attraction.
An attractive woman approached single young men on the bridge under the pretence of asking them to assist in a psychology experiment. However, the real experiment came after the test, when the woman gave the men her phone number and invited them to call her if they wanted to know more about her research.
13 out of 20 men later called her, although obviously they were more interested in the attractive woman than her research. The experiment was then repeated in a safe environment (on a park bench) and this time only 7 out of 23 men called her; a drop from 65% down to 30%, suggesting a strong link between increased fear and increased attraction.
