Do People Choose Whom They are Attracted to - Essay Example

Can we remember people’s faces we met today? It is hard to recall all of them, but we can certainly remember a few. Why do people remember a few and not all? We can also ask this question in a different way. Do people choose whom they are attracted to? The word “choose” is defined as “to select one thing rather than another.”1 One selects someone because one is attracted to him/her. This “attraction” occurs because that individual’s character or appearance fits in with one’s own standards, categories or expectations. People select whom they are attracted to because they have a preference for what they like and have no interest at all in those they do not like.

People favor what they like, and are apathetic to what they do not like. We all make our own categories, in a very detailed manner. These vary from person to person. For example, when you ask a girl her preferences in a man she would not give you a single adjective. Instead, she would say something like “she likes a guy who is over 6-feet and 5-inches tall; bald; wears glasses, and looks intelligent.” As she walks along she will turn her head towards men having these characteristics. She would give a guy who is over this height a glance. She would give him another look if she sees that he is bald and further attention when she notices him reading a Nature magazine. She might remember his face clearly until the end of the day. However, if the guys she meets do not fit in these categories, she would not remember anyone of them.

Another example is a director in the department store. His/her expectations of a good employee are someone who comes to work 15 minutes early, does not show her cleavage, smiles at all times, and does not carry her/his cell phone during working hours. The director would most likely look at an employee’s name badge if he/she comes to work early or possesses any of the above characteristics. If an employee meets the expectations of the director, that employee gives a really good impression on the director. The director will remember that employee comes promotion time and would recommend him for a promotion.

People pay attention to someone whom they are attracted to. This attraction is based on characteristics that they like and dislike. For this reason, two people who walk side by side the halls of Pasadena City College will meet the same people but would later remember not the same set of people. They will remember different people, people having characteristics fitting their own likes and dislike, or they do will not recognize anyone at all. Read More