We conducted a comprehensive analysis of assortative mating (i.e., the similarity between wives and husbands on a given characteristic) in a newlywed sample. These newlyweds showed (a) strong similarity in age, religiousness, and political orientation; (b) moderate similarity in education and verbal intelligence; (c) modest similarity in values; and (d) little similarity in matrix reasoning, self- and spouse-rated personality, emotional experience and expression, and attachment. Further analyses established that similarity was not simply due to background variables such as age and education and reflected initial assortment (i.e., similarity at the time of marriage) rather than convergence (i.e., increasing similarity with time). Finally, marital satisfaction primarily was a function of the rater's own traits and showed little relation to spousal similarity.

Fifty-one previously unacquainted opposite-sex dyads were surreptitiously videotaped while participating in an initial six-min interaction. Participants subsequently described their feelings about the interaction and their partner. Observers later viewed the interactions and evaluated their quality. We examined the ability of participants' physical attractiveness and scores on dimensions of the “big five” model of personality to predict the quality of their interactions. Women's physical attractiveness—but not their personality scores—predicted their own, their partner's, and observers' evaluations of interaction quality, with more attractive women experiencing better quality interactions than less attractive women. Conversely, men's personality scores—extraversion, in particular—predicted their own and observers' ratings of the quality of their interactions, with more extraverted men experiencing better quality interactions than less extraverted men. Men's physical attractiveness was unrelated to any measure of interaction quality. Similarity in dyad members' attractiveness was also unrelated to evaluations of their interactions. The data are interpreted within evolutionary accounts of sex differences in attractiveness preferences.

The emphasis on individual differences in evolutionary theories is important and has not received adequate attention. Strategic Pluralism makes a major contribution by addressing these issues, but like other evolutionary models (e.g., game theory) does not articulate the specific mechanisms underlying strategy selection. Specification of such mechanisms is an essential next step in the development of these models.

This study examined the development of sensitivity to specific patterns of movement that reveal interpersonal events. Preschoolers and adults viewed an animated film created by Heider and Simmel (1944), and then answered a set of probe questions about traits, emotions, and relationships that characterized the geometric figures in the film. Five-year-olds and adults gained similiar impressions of the film, and their attributions were similar to those that have emerged in open-ended descriptions of the film produced by adults in other experiments. The responses of 4-year-olds diverged from this pattern, as did, to a greater extent, the responses of 3-year-olds. The results were interpreted as supporting the view that sensitivity to patterns of motion that reveal interpersonal events emerges gradually during the late preschool years.

Audiotapes of the voices of77 preschool children were prepared. Subjects listened to the tapes, and then provided their impressions of the competence, leadership, dominance, warmth, and honesty of the children. Judgments of the voices' babyishness and attractiveness were also obtained. Perceivers reliably discriminated the children's voices along the dimensions of babyishness and attractiveness. Moreover, analyses revealed that the previously documented impact of these characteristics on first impressions of adults extends to impressions of young children. The similarity of the effects of these characteristics on impressions formed about children to those revealed for adults suggests that vocal qualities may have an impact on personality development via a process of self-fulfilling prophecy.

In this paper, we describe a methodological alternative to the point-light display for the study of the impact of human movement on social perception. This quantization technique involves degrading standard videotapes via a special effects generator at the time of editing. As is the case with a point-light display, quantization disguises structural characteristics of videotaped stimulus persons, and highlights their patterns of movement. Because quantization requires no special procedures during videotaping, it is unobtrusive, and helps maintain the ecological validity of the original stimulus. We offer empirical support from two studies for our proposal that dynamic quantization is a valuable methodological approach to the study of nonverbal behavior.

Ratings of the attractiveness and babyishness of the voices of 124 stimulus persons were obtained. These were compared to impressions provided by judges on the basis of vocal information only; self-descriptions provided by the stimulus persons; and descriptions of the stimulus persons provided by close friends. The vocal attractiveness stereotype was generally replicated, and the effects of vocal attractiveness and babyishness on impressions were found to be independent of one another. Sex differences in the impact of vocal attractiveness on perceptions were also revealed. Analyses did not reveal an impact of vocal attractiveness on self or friend ratings.

Recent research has provided considerable evidence that when facial appearance is the only information provided about a stimulus person, babyfaced adults are perceived to have more childlike qualities than mature-faced adults who are equal in perceived age and attractiveness. The present study utilized a simulated trial format to assess the impact of facial maturity on social perceptions in a more complex situation in which other meaningful information about the stimulus person was available. The fact that babyfaced adults are perceived to be more naive than those with mature features led to the prediction that a babyfaced defendant would be more often found guilty of an offense resulting from negligent actions than would a mature-faced defendant. The fact that babyfaced adults are perceived to be more honest than those with mature features yielded the prediction that babyfaced defendants would less often be perceived as guilty of charges involving intentional criminal behavior. Finally, when defendants were known to be guilty of a negligent crime, it was predicted that subjects would recommend less severe punishment for babyfaced defendants than for mature-faced ones. The pattern of results supported the predictions.