If you’re looking for love, then we have some important news: looks really don’t matter all that much because it’s what inside that truly counts…
Yep, it’s official: according to the results of a global survey spanning 20 countries, the most desirable trait in a romantic partner is a good personality.
The study by YouGov revealed that the majority of men and women across the world prioritise personality over looks when searching for a mate.
Here in the UK, just 14 per cent of men and five per cent of women chose looks as the most desirable quality in a partner, while over half (52%) of both sexes selected a good personality as the most favourable trait.
Other characteristics Brits rate when looking for a mate are sense of humour and intelligence.
And the preference for personality over looks was echoed in every country surveyed, although women voted for this trait in higher numbers than men.
Chatting about the findings to HuffPost UK, Relate counsellor Dee Homes explained that most relationships require an element of physical attraction, but that this can develop in different ways, without being based on looks.
‘I think that for some people, they may fancy somebody, be physically attracted to them, but there may be no more depth to it when they get to know that person. They may realise that they don’t actually like that person or have anything in common,’ she said
‘With couples who start as friends, sometimes as that friendship deepens they do start to be attracted to the other person – they become attracted to the personality as they get to know more about them. What might not have been there as an initial attraction develops.
‘It’s not as simple as just thinking “that person looks nice”, if you like somebody through and through, they look nice to you because of who they are to you, not just what they look like.’
Well, it’s certainly refreshing to hear that most of us aren’t that shallow when it comes to love!