(U-WIRE) BERKELEY, Calif. – Forget the bulging biceps, monster sports cars or colossal bank accounts. In today’s world of advanced technology, a tiny cell phone may be all a man needs to land himself a Valentine’s date.
Or, so say researchers.
According to a study by Liverpool psychologists, men in England are more likely than women to use a cell phone, not for its conventional purpose – wireless, vocal communication – but as a visual tool to show off success and, in the process, hopefully snag that special someone.
And whereas the standard phrase “the bigger, the better” often applies to markers of male desirability, in this case, “the smaller, the sexier,” may ring more true.
Men in England, researchers found, tend to more frequently display their high-tech talking devices in public in order to boost their attractiveness and show that they are socially connected.
Analysis suggested that there may be a psychological component in men that drives them to fidget and fiddle with their mobile phones.
Scientists likened the phone-flashing male impulse to the way a male peacock will fan its colorful feathers when surrounded by a crowd of potential mates.
The goal? To entice and captivate. The tiny hand-held phones, they hope, will serve to impress.
But before making a mad dash to the nearest cell phone manufacturer, psychology experts warn that it is necessary to realize that the English study is only one of many analyses of the science behind courtship.
The dynamics of how women and men communicate and interact with each other comprises a very broad field. As a result, such a finding cannot be simply extrapolated to apply to all relationships, say UC Berkeley psychologists.
“Are men different from women? On the average, sure, though there’s much overlap,” says UC Berkeley psychology professor Phil Cowan, who studies couple relationships.
At UC Berkeley, located on an entirely different continent, and submerged in an entirely different culture, the English findings may not hold the same value. Unlike England, where men seem to own more phones than females, the situation on campus seems to be flipped, students say. Here, the common consensus is that females are more likely to be found chatting on their cells.
“I see more girls on cell phones than guys,” says UC Berkeley junior Masoud Javazoie as he points to females holding cell phones on Sproul Plaza. “Like right there. Case in point. They talk on them much more.”
Students were willing to offer their own psychological analyses to explain the cell phone phenomenon.
Girls on campus may appear to have more cell phones because they are generally more chatty, says junior Lynn Guest, a third-year psychology major.
“I don’t think it’s a status symbol at all,” Guest says. “Girls have more of a tendency to talk.”
Sophomore Carlos Avila, however, proposes a different explanation for why he has noticed more females walking to class with cell phones raised to their ears.
“That’s annoying,” Avila says. “It’s annoying because it’s like they can’t adapt to their circumstances and they have to be attached to someone else.”
Most students say they find it difficult, and never even thought, to make the connection between a fancy cell phone and desirability.
“I don’t think of it in the sense of the peacock thing,” says sophomore James Yu, who owns a small silver cell phone manufactured by Sprint. “I don’t think that’s true. I just have [my cell phone] because it’s convenient.”
Despite their skepticism, many do agree with some aspects of the four-month study in which researchers monitored the relationship men had with their cell phones at an English pub.
Men do seem to exhibit a natural tendency to show off and mobile phones can, to some degree, impart an impressive quality, they say. They add that having the latest model in an array of colors is all part of the normal desire to keep up with trends and fashions.
“I think it looks cool,” says sophomore Stanley Lee, who points out that he does not own a cell phone. “It’s the same thing that drives people to fix up their cars and put on make-up.”
Although humans, both male and female, may frequently strive to impress, it may not necessarily be with a nice cell phone, says Yu.
“I could see that when you buy nice cars to attract girls, but I don’t think it really works with cell phones,” he says.
So, if an itsy-bitsy cell phone cannot garner the “Wow, that person is socially connected and I want to date him” reaction, then what can a man do to impress the women out there today?
Instead of flashing the cell phone, use it for its real purpose – to talk, Guest suggests.
Or, better yet, talk face-to-face. “Talk to them, in person, intelligently,” Guest says.
And, don’t limit it to just Valentine’s Day. “Do something special every day,” she adds.

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