In The Eye of the Beholder: What Women Really Love in a Partner


When it comes to love, a new survey has revealed that women could not care less about their partner having a six-pack or washboard stomach. Specialist law firm Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors investigated what qualities people loved most about their significant other, and stomachs came at the bottom of the list of physical attributes, with only feet ranking lower. 

Just 1% of the women surveyed ranked stomachs as the number one thing they loved most about their partner’s appearance, placing it at number 11 out of 12 physical characteristics in order of popularity. Their partner’s eyes were the most beloved physical trait, with 60.8% of women ranking this as the number one thing they loved most about their partner’s appearance, followed by the smile or teeth (14%) and arms (5.3%).

Physical traits ranked as ‘number one’ by female respondents in a relationship
1
Eyes
60.8%
2
Smile / Teeth
14%
3
Arms
5.3%
4
Hair
4.2%
5
Bottom
4.%
6
Shoulders
3.8%
7
Legs
1.8%
8
Ears
1.6%
9
Nose
1.6%
10
Chest / Breasts
1.6%
11
Stomach
0.9%
12
Feet
0.2%

Michael Saul, partner at Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors, said: “In recent years, social media channels such as Snapchat and Instagram have given a whole new platform for celebrities and influencers to flaunt their muscles, share tips and sell training and nutritional plans so that others can emulate their appearance. While this can be fun and helpful most of the time, it also has given rise to mounting pressure on both young men and women to look a certain way.

“The online, 24-hour access to this curated aesthetic serves sets fitness and beauty standards that are, in real terms, unrealistic to achieve without the help of a professional team of personal trainers, cosmetic surgeons, nutritionists, stylists and so on. All of this we know can be damaging to men’s mental and physical health. 

“That is why it is so refreshing to learn from our survey that what women really fall in love with is the eyes and a nice smile. Features such as the stomach and chest are at the very bottom of women’s priority list, and hopefully this will offer some reassurance to the men out there who are struggling under the pressure to exercise or diet to extremes in order to achieve the body type that is propagated on social media.”

The survey also looked into personality traits - women ranked ‘kindness and generosity’ (26.4%), intelligence (20%) and ‘dependability and reliability’ (11.3%) as the top characteristics they valued in their partner. A good sense of humour - traditionally a much-requested attribute in the lonely hearts columns of old - came in fourth place (10.9%).

Personality traits ranked as ‘number one’ by female respondents
1
Their kindness and/or generosity
26.4%
2
Their intelligence
20.%
3
How dependable and reliable they are
11.3%
4
Their sense of humour
10.9%
5
Their honesty and trustworthiness
10.4%
6
How fun-loving and playful they are
5.5%
7
How they treat other people
4.9%
8
Their confidence
3.6%
9
How happy and optimistic they are
2.2%
10
How resourceful and practical they are
2%
11
How sexy they are
1.5%
12
Their drive and ambition
0.7%
13
How brave and courageous they are
0.6%

Overall, men and women were in agreement: personality trumps looks. When asked to prioritise five key characteristics when considering a romantic partner, 46% of all 1,066 survey participants ranked personality as number one.  However, physical attraction was much more important to men than to women, with 32.8% of men ranking this in second place compared to 26.2% of women.



Most important characteristic
Everyone
All Men
All Women
1
I like their personality
46%
45%
46.5%
2
I am attracted to them physically
27.7%
32.8%
26.2%
3
I like their sense of humour 
13.2%
8.7%
14.9%
4
I like their intelligence
6.7%
7.6%
6.2%
5
We share similar interests
6.4%
6%
6.2%

The Survey
The full results of the survey are available here

About Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors
Formed in 2000, Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors was the first law firm in England and Wales to specialise specifically in cosmetic surgery and cosmetic beauty negligence claims. Michael Saul, partner at Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors, is a passionate advocate for ensuring patients are fully informed before undertaking cosmetic surgery. 

For more information about Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors, visit www.cosmeticsurgerysolicitors.co.uk