title: An examination of the love-is-blind bias among gay men and lesbians.
abstract: The present study examined evidence of the 'love-is-blind bias' (a tendency to perceive romantic partners as more attractive than the self) among gay men and lesbians. In total, 93 gay men and 140 lesbians provided self- and partner-ratings of physical attractiveness for a range of body components. Results of a series of t-tests showed that both gay men and lesbians rated their partners as significantly more attractive than themselves on all but one item, respectively. Effect sizes for these differences were moderate to large. Further analyses showed that lesbians provided higher self- and partner-ratings than gay men on some items, although effect sizes for these differences were small. Overall, these results provide evidence for the existence of a robust positive illusion in self-partner perceptions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Westminster, 309 Regent Street, London W1B 2UW, UK. virenswami@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Viren
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Swami
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female; D018451:Homosexuality, Male; D006801:Humans; D007088:Illusions; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008149:Love; D008297:Male; D012649:Self Concept; D012928:Social Desirability; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires