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Published on: November 10, 2010
Intrasexual vigilance: the implicit cognition of romantic rivalry
Jon K Maner1, Saul L Miller, D Aaron Rouby
1Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA. maner@psy.fsu.edu
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|July 10, 2009
Summary
Concerns about infidelity trigger cognitive biases in highly jealous individuals, causing them to vigilantly process attractive rivals. This research explores implicit processes in romantic rivalry and jealousy.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Evolutionary Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Romantic jealousy is a complex emotion with evolutionary roots.
- Concerns about infidelity can activate specific cognitive processes related to mate guarding.
- Individual differences in chronic jealousy may moderate responses to perceived threats.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether concerns about infidelity elicit implicit cognitive biases in individuals with high chronic romantic jealousy.
- To examine the specific cognitive processes involved in vigilantly attending to and evaluating attractive romantic rivals.
- To integrate social cognitive and evolutionary perspectives on romantic rivalry.
Main Methods:
- Four experiments were conducted using priming techniques to activate infidelity concerns.
- Participants with varying levels of chronic jealousy were exposed to attractive same-sex targets.
- Cognitive measures assessed visual processing, memory encoding, and implicit evaluation.
Main Results:
- Priming infidelity concerns led to vigilant attention towards attractive same-sex targets in highly jealous individuals.
- These individuals also showed enhanced encoding and memory for attractive targets.
- Implicit negative evaluations of attractive targets were observed in the high jealousy group.
Conclusions:
- Concerns about infidelity activate a coordinated set of implicit cognitive biases in romantically jealous individuals.
- These biases facilitate the processing of attractive rivals who pose a threat to romantic interests.
- The findings highlight the interplay between social cognition and evolutionary pressures in romantic relationships.
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