Physical looks not a priority in dating

Looks are not everything when it comes to love. The perception of beauty in a romantic partner changes with time as individuals get to know one another better before they start dating, says a new study.

Partners who become romantically involved soon after meeting tend to be similar in physical attractiveness than partners who get together after knowing each other for a while. “Having more time to get acquainted may allow other factors, such as another person’s compatibility as a relationship partner, to make that person appealing in ways other than the physical attractiveness,” said lead researcher Lucy Hunt from the University of Texas at Austin. “Another person might actually become more attractive in the eyes of the beholder by the virtue of other factors,” Hunt said.

The researchers looked at data collected from 167 couples — 67 dating and 100 married. The couples had been together for as few as three months and as long as 53 years, with an average relationship length of eight years and eight months. The results revealed that the longer the romantic partners had known each other before dating, the less likely they were to be matched on attractiveness.

The research appeared in the journal Psychological Science.

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