Some people are good at telling stories and, not surprisingly, other people are bad at it. For those of you who are good storytellers, if you also happen to be a dude, congratulations are in order: You might get to have sex soon! A new study says that your talent for storytelling makes you more attractive in the eyes of women. For those of you who suck at it, here’s some help.
The study, published in the journal Personal Relationships, suggests that men portrayed as strong storytellers are considered of higher status than those who aren’t, and perceived higher status makes good storytelling men more attractive. This is obviously why Joey teaches Ross the “backpacking through Europe story” when he learns that Ross hasn’t had sex in six months. (season eight, episode four.)
John Donahue and Melanie Green conducted their research with a relatively small U.S. undergraduate sample. They found that while strong female storytellers did not tempt male participants, strong male storytellers did garner interest from women as long-term partners.
Further experimentation asked participants to evaluate whether they thought a good storyteller would make a good spouse. For men, the implication that a good storyteller was of a higher status did not make women more attractive. However, for women there was a definitive correlation between storytelling ability and desirability as a long-term partner or spouse.
Donahue and Green’s speculative explanation for the difference in women’s response to storytelling versus men’s response relates to evolution. They theorize about women’s investment for reproduction and socialization to appreciate first impressions whereas men might consider good storytelling women a threat.
We’re not so sure about all of that but we are sure that Bill Simmons thinks storytelling is overrated.
"Storytelling" is one of the dumbest new media words of the decade – it sounds fancy and means nothing yet gets thrown around constantly.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) May 3, 2016
(Via Research Digest)
