An interesting finding was published by researchers at the University of Southampton and University of Bristol: the more attractive a man finds a woman, the more inclined he is to not use a condom as protection.
A recent survey revealed the men were not influenced by the perceived risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease (STD) when the women in the pictures they were shown were considered highly attractive.
Even though there’s compelling evidence that consistent use of condoms prevents the spread of STDs, HIV, and AIDS, their efficacy is strictly dependent on men actually using them.
According to previous research pieces, men’s intention of using protection in sexual encounters is directly tied to how attractive they find their potential partner. The reverse side of the coin is that men are more likely to use a condom if they find the woman less attractive.
Some experts have tried to explain this tendency by going back to our evolutionary traits, saying that men want to reproduce with women they find highly attractive.
However, Dr. Roger Ingham, University of Southampton sexual health expert, believes this behavior can have more than one explanation, including the possibility that men are willing to give up their health in order to gain a higher social status that comes with having sex with beautiful women.
For the study, researchers surveyed 51 heterosexual males (aged 18 to 69), asking them to rate 20 women based on their portraits. To do that, e participants were required to answer a few questions:
- How attractive do you find this woman? (1-100 rating system)
- How likely are you to have sex with this woman?
- How likely are you to use a condom while having sex with this woman?
- How likely is this woman to have a sexually transmitted disease?
Overall, higher condom use was associated with lower rates of attractiveness, the participant being married or in an exclusive relationship, higher number of sexual partners, younger age, and losing virginity at an older age.
Researchers also noted that the more attractive a participant considered himself to be, the less likely he was to use protection, and the more he thought that other men would also engage in unprotected sexual intercourse.
Image Source: Fusion
