The siren's call: Terror management and the threat of men's sexual attraction to women.
Abstract
Why do sexually appealing women often attract derogation and aggression? According to terror management theory, women's sexual allure threatens to increase men's awareness of their corporeality and thus mortality. Accordingly, in Study 1 a subliminal mortality prime decreased men's but not women's attractiveness ratings of alluring women. In Study 2, mortality salience (MS) led men to downplay their sexual intent toward a sexy woman. In Study 3, MS decreased men's interest in a seductive but not a wholesome woman. In Study 4, MS decreased men's but not women's attraction to a sexy opposite-sex target. In Study 5, MS and a corporeal lust prime increased men's tolerance of aggression toward women. Discussion focuses on mortality concerns and male sexual ambivalence.
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Mortality salience reduces men's attraction to a sexually attractive woman, presumably because she reminds them that body trumps mind and that physicality will end symbolic efforts to deny death.
“mortality salience reduces men's attraction to a sexually attractive woman, presumably because she carries the reminder that body trumps mind, and physicality (however alluring) will spell the end of symbolic efforts to deny death (Landau, Goldenberg, Greenberg, Gillath, Solomon, Cox, Martens, & Pyszczynski, 2006; Goldenberg, 2013).”
From An Integrative Terror Management Theory Perspective on Media Effects: A Model and 12 Hypotheses for Research (2016) · cites this paper as Landau et al., 2006
Men reminded of their sexual lust after mortality salience showed greater tolerance of aggression against women.
“men reminded of their sexual lust after mortality salience showed greater tolerance of aggression against women (Landau et al., 2006).”
From An Integrative Terror Management Theory Perspective on Media Effects: A Model and 12 Hypotheses for Research (2016) · cites this paper as Landau et al., 2006
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- Authors
- Landau, M. J., Goldenberg, J. L., Greenberg, J., Gillath, O., Solomon, S., Cox, C., Martens, A., & Pyszczynski, T.
- Affiliations
- University of Arizona (US)
- University of South Florida (US)
- University of California, Davis (US)
- Skidmore College (US)
- University of Missouri (US)
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs (US)
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- Published
- 2006-01
- Volume
- 90
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 129-146
- ISSN
- 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1315
- OpenAlex
- W2147938879
- Cited by
- 101
- References
- 13
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 6
- FWCI
- 7.78
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Keywords
- terror management theory, mortality salience, sexual attraction, sexual attractiveness, embodiment, opposite-sex attraction, seduction
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Attitude to Death, Awareness, Fear, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Surveys and Questionnaires, Sexual Behavior, Social Desirability
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