Editing Matching hypothesis (section)

{{Short description|Mate selection by social desirability}}

The '''matching hypothesis''' (also known as the '''matching phenomenon''') argues that people are more likely to form and succeed in a committed relationship with someone who is equally socially desirable, typically in the form of [[physical attraction]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Feingold|first=Alan|title=Matching for attractiveness in romantic partners and same-sex friends: A meta-analysis and theoretical critique.|journal=Psychological Bulletin|date=1 January 1988|volume=104|issue=2|pages=226–235|doi=10.1037/0033-2909.104.2.226}}</ref> The hypothesis is derived from the discipline of [[social psychology]] and was first proposed by American social psychologist [[Elaine Hatfield]] and her colleagues in 1966.<ref name="wal1966">Walster, E., Aronson, V., Abrahams, D., & Rottman, L. (1966). Importance of physical attractiveness in dating behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 4(5), 508-516.</ref>

Successful couples of differing physical attractiveness may be together due to other matching variables that compensate for the difference in attractiveness.<ref name="Myers 2010">{{cite book|last=Myers|first=David G.|title=Social psychology|year=2009|publisher=McGraw-Hill Higher Education|location=New York|isbn=9780073370668|edition=10th}}</ref> For instance, some men with wealth and status desire younger, more attractive women. Some women are more likely to overlook physical attractiveness for men who possess wealth and status.<ref name="Myers 2010" /><ref>{{cite book|author=Elizabeth A. Minton, Lynn R. Khale|title=Belief Systems, Religion, and Behavioral Economics|year=2014|location=New York|publisher=Business Expert Press LLC|isbn=978-1-60649-704-3}}</ref>

It is also similar to some of the theorems outlined in [[uncertainty reduction theory]], from the [[post-positivist]] discipline of [[communication studies]]. These theorems include constructs of nonverbal expression, perceived similarity, liking, information seeking, and intimacy, and their correlations to one another.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Berger|first=Charles R.|author2=Calabrese, Richard J.|title=Some Exploration in Initial Interaction and Beyond: Toward a Developmental Theory of Interpersonal Communication|journal=Human Communication Research|date=1 January 1975|volume=1|issue=2|pages=99–112|doi=10.1111/j.1468-2958.1975.tb00258.x}}</ref>