Are We Facebook "Official"?

In the movie The Social Network, Mark Zuckerberg deems the relationship status section of users’ Info the finishing touch on his new website, “the Facebook.” Assuming the movie was depicted accurately, this last minute addition may have changed the face of what it means to be “in a relationship.” Today this means that your relationship status is no longer a private agreement between you and your partner, but rather a public display broadcasted to all of your “friends.” “Facebook official” is a popular term used to describe the process of changing your relationship status on Facebook to reflect that you are now “in a relationship.” For some, this denotes the official beginning of a new relationship. After all, nothing’s official until it’s on Facebook, right?  

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Want to Get Lucky on Your Holiday Date? Skip the Mistletoe and Wear Red Instead

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, everyone knows that red is one of the colors associated with this holiday. It’s the color of Santa’s suit, Rudolph’s nose, and those tacky woolen sweaters you inevitably see at the office holiday party. However, recent research suggests that red gets us “in the mood” for more than just eggnog and gift-giving—it also increases how attractive and sexually desirable we find other people.

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Ovulation Makes Guys' Bling "Blingier"

In a recent study, researchers examined whether women pay more attention to men’s status cues when women are most fertile. Naturally cycling women (i.e., non-pill users) paid more attention to status symbols (e.g., sports cars, mansions) when they were ovulating compared to other times of their cycles. Also, ovulating non-pill users paid more attention to status than did pill users. Finally, pill users’ eye for status did not vary across the menstrual cycle.

Read more about status cues and conspicuous consumption here and here, and about the interesting effects of birth control pill use here and here.

Lens, I., Driesmans, K., Pandelaere, M., & Janssens, K. (2012). Would male conspicuous consumption capture the female eye? Menstrual cycle effects on women’s attention to status products. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48, 346-349.