LAUSR

Abstract Sensitivity to personality variability through facial structures subsequently elicits inferences of another's behavioral intentions, which could include those pertaining to preferred reproductive strategies. Given the association between agreeableness and interest in long-term mating intentions, we predicted that individuals with a long-term mating orientation would prefer others whose faces communicate higher levels of trait agreeableness. Participants viewed pairs of male and female faces manipulated to connote high and low levels of agreeableness and indicated their preferences among each pair before completing the Sociosexual Orientation Inventory-Revised. Consonant with hypotheses, women espousing restricted sociosexual attitudes marginally preferred agreeable male faces. Furthermore, men espousing unrestricted attitudes preferred agreeable male faces, suggesting an interest in associating with men posing little intrasexual threat. Contrary to predictions, sociosexuality predicted neither men's nor women's preferences for agreeableness in female faces. We frame these results from an evolutionary perspective considering the identification of optimum mates and potential intrasexual rivals.