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emotion
You feel more attraction when your heart rate is high.
The misattribution of arousal causes you to interpret unrelated physical excitement as romantic interest.
In a 1974 study, men who crossed a high, anxiety-inducing suspension bridge were significantly more likely to call a female researcher for follow-up than those who crossed a low, stable bridge. The subjects mistook their adrenaline for attraction.
Your brain looks for a reason to explain why your body is racing.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Dutton and Aron, 1974
- What the check found
- While the finding is famous, it is limited by self-selection bias, which remains the primary critique of the study's validity.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.