If you read popular women's magazines then you may already think
that women need to be beautiful to attract and keep a man.
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In the predatory female
discourse, a man is unlikely to want to make a commitment
to a woman who dresses in a 'slutty' way (implies woman is
sexually 'unclean')
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BUT
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He is more likely to want
to make a commitment to a woman who dresses in a 'sexy' way
(implies woman is sexual, but 'clean')
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But how big a part does a woman's appearance really play in her
ability to get a guy to commit? And what about what he looks like?
Macquarie University psychology PhD graduate, Dr Fiona Papps, set
about answering these questions in her PhD research. She recently
graduated with the Vice-Chancellor's Commendation for her thesis
“Snare or safety net? An exploration of women's and men's understandings
of relationship commitment.”
Papps explored the popular notion reinforced in women's magazines
that relationship commitment entails entrapment because men don't
want commitment - they just want to have sex with lots of women.
But at the same time, women are only supposed to express their sexuality
within a committed relationship with a man.
For her research Papps examined 40 articles about relationships
in popular women's magazine “Cosmopolitan” over a twenty
year period (1976 to 1995). She also surveyed 108 men and women
about their understandings and beliefs about romantic relationships
and commitment.
Papps used a number of discourses to explain certain attitudes and
beliefs - the 'predatory female' discourse which says that women
use beauty, clothing and appropriate sexuality to trap men into
romantic relationships; the 'male sexual drive' discourse which
says that men have a biological desire to have sex with lots of
women; and the 'have/hold' discourse which says that sex is permitted
within the boundaries of a committed relationship.
Papps found that regardless of your gender, the only acceptable
way for you to express your sexuality is through a committed relationship
- the have/hold discourse.
"Respondents condemned promiscuity for both men and women.
Both sexes believed it was important for their partners to be 'sexually
clean'," Papps says.
Most respondents thought commitment was a lot of effort. "The
perception was that women would work at a relationship in return
for men spending time with them. Many women reported a loss of their
own identity in a relationship," she says.
"Interestingly, while some mentioned beauty as being important,
and the predatory female discourse was somewhat taken for granted,
the number was not as high as you would expect from reading women's
magazines."
So Papps decided to explore further the extent to which people did
endorse the predatory female discourse. She designed a third study
to find out how likely someone would be to form a commitment to
someone who was beautiful, or who had a reputation for promiscuity,
or who dressed in a certain way - such as a woman who dressed in
an overtly sexy or "slutty" way.
She surveyed another 199 men and women using gender discourse in
two ways - with 11 appropriately (reflecting the predatory female
discourse) and inappropriately gendered statements to which respondents
had to answer true or false. The idea was to get the respondents
to rate what they believed to be true not only for themselves but
also for men and for women in general, to reflect the broader views
of society (which might not necessarily be as socially desirable
as their own views).
"For example I used appropriately gendered statements like
'women use beauty to attract and keep a man in a romantic relationship',
and then the inappropriate form of 'men use beauty to attract and
keep a woman in a romantic relationship'," Papps explains.
"In this case, I expected that most would answer 'false' to
the second statement but this did not happen.
Both men and women believed that men needed to look good to attract
women, although male respondents said this more than the females.
"The predatory female discourse was strongly endorsed in the
third study. Men strongly indicated that in general women needed
to be beautiful to get a relationship, and that women were much
more manipulative than men," she says.
So what does all this mean?
"While people are locating their understandings of commitment
within these discourses - that a woman must use beauty to attract
a man and keep a relationship, and that a woman must have a relationship
to be seen as worthwhile or valued - this perpetuates male power,"
Papps comments.
"These discourses offer no other way for women to express their
sexuality and discourage women to explore their sexuality in any
way other than in a committed relationship with a man."
She says that the media gives a strong message that a woman needs
to be beautiful, dress in a certain way and to be in a relationship.
Even the television show “Sex in the City”, which depicts
the lives of four 30+ single women in New York City, reinforces
this message. Papps, who enjoys the show, admits that the characters,
who locate their understandings of sexuality within a more permissive
discourse, are mainly concerned with 'catching' a man.
"The women in this show are more sexual, and it is acceptable
for them to be sexually active, but only in a certain way. The whole
thing is geared towards finding a relationship with a man,"
she says.
One of the interesting findings in Papps' research is the importance
that men placed on looking good to attract a woman.
"Men have traditionally had a better body image than women,
but the incidence of male eating disorders is on the rise. With
the advent of new men's magazines like “FHM” and “Men's
Health”, which also stress the importance of male attractiveness,
it will be interesting to see what happens as these magazines get
more readership," she says.
If the media is perpetuating this notion of beauty and relationships,
then Papps says we need to be conscious of this so that other ways
of living our lives are seen as equally viable. "Some researchers
have argued that we have a biological predisposition to be in a
close personal relationship, but I disagree with this. I believe
it is socially constructed," she argues.
"One of the strongest forms of evidence to support this view
is to look at what happens if you choose to live your life outside
the boundaries set by social norms. You will be placed under a lot
of pressure to conform - especially as you get older - and you will
be left out of the mainstream social scene," she says.
Story by Kathy Vozella
Photos by Michelle Wilson
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