Did you know that posture has the power to attract future mates? Well, a new research suggests that posture is more important than smiling, especially to people who are fond of finding potential romantic partners through online dating apps and speed-dating.
In the animal kingdom, chimpanzees have been noted by the way they attract mates and assert dominance through flaunting their limbs. And today, a research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Monday revealed that the "postural expansiveness" can increase chances for humans to attract potential partners in speed and online dating.
"Postural expansiveness" basically refers to how much space a person takes up with their torso and limbs. And according to CNN, researchers discovered that body postures involving widespread limbs and a stretched torso almost doubles the chances of success compared with closed postures involving limbs held close to the torso, hunched over.
Study coauthor Tanya Vacharkulksemsuk, a post-doctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, also added that the aforementioned "power postures" do not only express dominance. In fact, the expansive postures signal also conveys willingness to share those traits with others.
"We've seen it in the animal world, that taking up more space and maximizing presence in a physical space is used as signal for attracting a mate," Vacharkulksemsuk said. "By exerting dominance they're trying to signal to a potential mate 'I am able to do things, I have a space in this hierarchy, I have access to resources.'"
The study also showed how posture became more significant than smiling or laughing in terms of dating. However, this was not the first time that "power poses" made headlines.
As a matter of fact, "power poses" was a big hit in 2010 when it was found that adapting them could increase hormone levels, Mirror Daily notes. However, it also ignited controversy when a follow-up study failed to imitate the effect.
Meanwhile, several researchers who were not involved with the study have expressed their doubts regarding its methodology, The Atlantic reveals. According to University of Notre Dame anthropology professor Agustin Fuentes, the findings might only be an indication of general social preference for openness.
University of Southern California neuroscience professor Irving Biederman also said that the "expansive poses" made women looked vulnerable instead of powerful. While other members of the scientific community believed that the findings are not broad to emit a universal opinion regarding the importance of posture.
So, do you think that body language and nonverbal signals are vital in initial romantic encounters? Should the way a person sits or stand matter in dating?
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