New research shows selfless people have more sex

If you want to get a little, you should trying giving a little.  New research out of Nipissing University shows that people who help others are more desirable to the opposite sex, have more sexual partners and have more frequent sex. The study, titled Altruism predicts mating success in humans, is published in the British Journal of Psychology.
The research team was led by Dr. Steven Arnocky, associate professor in the department of psychology at Nipissing; and featured Dr. Pat Barclay, associate professor in the department of psychology at Guelph University, as well as Nipissing University psychology students Tina Piché, Graham Albert, and Danielle Ouellette.  They surveyed approximately 800 individuals, about their relationships and their propensity for helping others through giving to charity, donating blood, helping strangers cross the street, helping classmates with assignments, and more. 
 “We’ve provided the first empirical evidence that altruism may tangibly benefit mating in humans living in Western industrialized society,” said Dr. Arnocky.  “It appears that altruism evolved in our species, in part, because it serves as a signal of other underlying desirable qualities, which helps individuals reproduce.”
The findings support previous research that focused on food sharing by hunters among non-kin as a form of altruism, which show that men who hunt – and share – meat enjoy greater reproductive success. As well, research has previously shown that individuals report preferring altruistic mates, all else being equal.
The study also found that altruism seems to work more effectively for men in terms of attracting a partner. Altruism, it seems, is a powerful attractant for females, which is obviously good news for nice guys as well as local charities.
One question that remains is: are people more altruistic because they are having sex? Or, are they having more sex because they are altruistic?
Previous studies showed that if you add altruism to a man, women find him more attractive. Dr. Arnocky’s  study shows how this can translate into the very tangible benefits of more sex, though he and his team have specified that more research needs to be done in this area. 
“It would be worth extending the study to include a wider array of variables. Relationship length, partner quality, extrapair mating, and success at mate poaching are all potential indicators of mating success that would be worth examining in relation to altruism. Also, given the importance we place on attractiveness, resources, and intelligence, it would be worthwhile to explore how individuals ‘trade-off’ altruism against other desirable qualities,” said Dr. Arnocky.Looking to boost your altruism before the weekend?  You candonate to Nipissing University right here.  Have fun giving and there’s really no need to thank us.