You're Not Going to Find Love With That Dating Checklist

(Image credit: Marie Claire)

published 14 February 2014

My dream relationship is to find a super good looking man, who drives a motorcycle and owns multiple deli meat factories — internationally. According to psychology professoran and author Dr. Ty Tashiro, I'm probably never going to find love, because all of my relationship needs are materialistic (Has this guy never had a killer turkey club?).

Instead of seeking out materialistic factors in a relationship (ie: artisan prosciutto slices), we should focus on key personality traits, like "courteous, flexible, trusting, good-natured, tolerant," — qualities more associated with "agreeableness," according to Dr. Ty Tashiro, who was interviewed by the Daily Mail.

Also, steer away from novelty qualities (goodbye motorcycles!) — their appeal wears off faster than more stable traits. According to studies, "'liking' declines at a rate of three per cent per year while 'lusting' deteriorates at a faster eight per cent." It is important to keep a balance between "liking" and "lusting."

As for money? It makes a "difference at the low end of the income scale, which has the highest divorce rater in the first ten years of marriage." Yet, after $75,000, there is no link between higher levels of pyschological well-being and more wealth.

Moral of the story: Keep your dating checklist to a three-wish minimum, focused on personality traits, and take out the "no vegetarians allowed" part in your Tinder profile. And if that sounds too involved, try this.

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