In-Law and Mate Preferences in Chinese Society and the Role of Traditional Cultural Values:

摘要

Using 347 parenta??child dyads as participants, this study directly examined in-law and mate preferences in a typical collectivist culture. The results showed (1) traits indicating social status and parental investment were more highly valued by the parents, while traits indicating genetic quality and traits related to romantic love were more highly valued by the children. (2) Parental preferences were moderated by gender of the in-laws. Good earning capacity was more preferred by parents in a son-in-law, traits connoting genetic quality and reproductive fitness were more preferred by parents in a daughter-in-law. (3) There was more convergence in in-law and mate preferences in Chinese culture than in Western cultures. (4) Traditional cultural values (i.e., filial piety) can be used as a predictor of traditional mate preferences and less parenta??child divergences. Additionally, greater preference for kind and understanding by parents than by children as well as by daughters than by sons, and greater preference for social status by the daughtersa?? than by the sonsa?? parents have not been observed in the rating and the ranking instrument. These findings illustrated how culture handles the parenta??child disagreement over mating by authorizing greater parental influence on childrena??s mating decisions.