The Mate Screening Motive: How Women

Use Luxury Consumption to Signal to Men

QIHUI CHEN
YAJIN WANG
NAILYA ORDABAYEVA

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Previous research has found that for men, activating a mating motive increases
luxury consumption as a way to attract a romantic partner. However, little is known
about the role of luxury consumption in women’s romantic endeavors. The present
research conceptualizes a mate screening motive, which explains how women
use luxury consumption to romantically signal to men. Six studies and two follow-
ups conducted in controlled and field settings show that the mate screening motive
boosts women’s consumption of luxury goods as a way to signal their mating
standards to men and thereby deter undesirable pursuers. The effect is dimin-
ished when mate screening is less necessary such as when external screening
tools are available (e.g., screening filters on dating websites), the quality of poten-
tial mates is high, and the focus is on selecting a desirable partner rather than
deterring undesirable pursuers. The findings have important implications for un-
derstanding how consumers use products and brands in romantic relationships
and for designing marketing strategies and communication for luxury brands, com-
mercial dating services, and dating apps. Our findings also provide insights for
consumers on how to use brands and products as effective communication devi-
ces in romantic endeavors.

Keywords: mating motive, mate screening motive, romantic relationship, luxury

consumption, conspicuous consumption

Qihui Chen (qhchen@umd.edu) is a doctoral candidate in marketing at Robert

H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742,
USA. Yajin Wang (yajinwang@ceibs.edu) is a professor of marketing at China
Europe International Business School (CEIBS), Shanghai 201206 China. Nailya
Ordabayeva (nailya.ordabayeva@tuck.dartmouth.edu) is an associate professor of
T rue love is priceless, but finding love can be difficult
and costly. An average American spends $120,000
over a lifetime on dating—including romantic dinners,
business administration at Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College, Hanover, movie dates, and romantic gifts—as well as on personal
NH 03755, USA. Please address correspondence to Qihui Chen. The work described
in this article was partially supported by Dean’s Research Grant, China Europe grooming and cosmetics (Gervis 2019). Dating-related
International Business School (CEIBS), to the second author. The authors would expenses have pushed more than one in four Americans
like to thank the editor, the associate editor, and the anonymous reviewers for their
constructive comments and guidance throughout the review process. The authors into debt (CompareCards 2020). At the same time, the U.S.
also thank Ceren Aksu, Jinhyung Kim, Andy Li, Shaaref Shah, and Mengchen dating industry has grown at an annual rate of 10.7% over
Zheng for their research assistance. The authors gratefully acknowledge the helpful
input from the research seminar participants at the University of Maryland, London the last 5 years (IBIS World 2021). These trends indicate
School of Economics and Political Science, and China Europe International that consumption is an important tool that helps individuals
Business School (CEIBS). The authors also thank Vladas Griskevicius for his in-
sightful comments on this research. Supplementary materials are included in the
form romantic relationships. Accordingly, marketers, in-
web appendix accompanying the online version of this article. cluding luxury brands, regularly appeal to consumers’ ro-
mantic pursuits in their marketing strategies and
communications (see examples in web appendix A).
Prior literature reports that activating a romantic mating
Editor: Bernd H. Schmitt motive prompts men to display luxury goods to attract po-
tential romantic partners by signaling social status
Associate Editor: Echo Wen Wan (Griskevicius et al. 2007; Janssens et al. 2011; Sundie et al.
2011). However, it argues that for women, luxury con-
Advance Access publication July 26, 2022
sumption is less useful in the relationship formation stage,
C The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Journal of Consumer Research, Inc.
V
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/),
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please contact journals.permissions@oup.com  Vol. 50  2023
https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucac034
303
304
because men value non-status-related qualities such as so-
ciability in potential partners. Consistent with this notion,
prior research finds that a mating motive neither increases
nor decreases women’s desire for luxury goods in the rela-
tionship formation stage (Griskevicius et al. 2007; Wang
and Griskevicius 2014). Related work on the relationship
maintenance stage examining the behavior of non-single
women suggests that these women display luxury to guard
their existing romantic partner from female competitors
(Wang and Griskevicius 2014). Against this backdrop, an
important open question is what overlooked factors might
drive women’s luxury consumption in their romantic rela-
tionship formation pursuits.
To address this question, the present research takes a
closer look at women’s unique priorities in the romantic re-
lationship formation stage. We propose that in the romantic
formation stage, individuals need to narrow down their
mating options and deter undesirable pursuers. We concep-
tualize this as a mate screening motive. There are reasons
to expect this motive to be more prevalent in women than
in men. First, a recent survey of 4,860 single U.S. adults
has revealed that whereas single men report having greater
concerns about approaching and attracting potential part-
ners, single women focus on finding someone who meets
their mating standards (Pew Research Center 2020). These
survey results echo prior research in biology, anthropology,
and evolutionary and social psychology arguing that select-
ing the right partner is more important and relevant for
women (vs. men), who assume the role of a chooser in
early romantic encounters (Buss and Schmitt 1993;
Fletcher et al. 2014; Saad, Eba, and Sejean 2009). We posit
that women’s mate screening motive emerges in romantic
contexts where they garner a lot of attention from potential
partners. As such, this motive increases women’s con-
sumption of luxury goods as a way to signal their mating
standards and deter undesirable pursuers. We document
this phenomenon across different romantic settings (e.g.,
online dating and singles’ events) and identify theoretically
grounded and practically relevant boundary conditions.
Our findings contribute to the marketing literature and
practice in meaningful ways. From a substantive stand-
point, our results offer useful insights for managers of lux-
ury brands and dating services on unique strategies that
they may utilize to market to women, who are a significant
portion of their customer base. From a theoretical stand-
point, prior research presumes that the mating motive does
not impact women’s luxury consumption in the relation-
ship formation stage. In contrast, we conceptualize a criti-
cal understudied mate screening motive in women’s
mating pursuits and show that it boosts women’s desire for
luxury products. Thus, our work advances the limited un-
derstanding of how women use luxury goods for mating
purposes differently from men.
By identifying the triggers, consequences, and bound-
aries of the mate screening motive, our work also extends
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
the growing literature on the role of mating motives in con-
sumption choices (Hasford, Kidwell, and Lopez-Kidwell
2018; Van den Bergh, Dewitte, and Warlop 2008).
Moreover, it addresses recent calls (Otterbring et al. 2020)
for more research on how consumers’ romantic goals, part-
ners, and relationships influence consumption decisions
(Dahl, Sengupta, and Vohs 2009; Mende et al. 2019;
Simpson, Griskevicius, and Rothman 2012). Our findings
make additional contributions to research on luxury con-
sumption, which previously focused on how luxury con-
sumption can attract customers, followers, and employers
(Desmichel, Ordabayeva, and Kocher 2020; Lee, Ko, and
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Megehee 2015; Nelissen and Meijers 2011; Scott, Mende,
and Bolton 2013). Extending that literature, we identify
contexts in which luxury consumption can be used strategi-
cally to detract an undesirable audience. Next, we outline
the theoretical foundations of our research.
THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Romantic Relationship Formation through
Consumption Choices
Consumers use products in strategic ways to overcome
challenges, seize opportunities, and ensure favorable out-
comes in romantic pursuits (Durante and Arsena 2015;
Hasford et al. 2018; Van den Bergh et al. 2008). Prior re-
search examines how consumer behavior is shaped by a
general mating motive—a general desire to form a roman-
tic relationship—such as when imagining a date with an at-
tractive individual or viewing pictures of potential partners
(Griskevicius and Kenrick 2013; Griskevicius et al. 2007;
Janssens et al. 2011; Sundie et al. 2011). Previous work
suggests that a mating motive impacts the behaviors of
men and women differently. In particular, it leads men to
display luxury goods (Griskevicius et al. 2007; Janssens
et al. 2011; Otterbring et al. 2018; Sundie et al. 2011) to
loudly signal their high social status, wealth, and ability to
provide resources for women (Buss 1989; Eastwick and
Finkel 2008; Kenrick et al. 2001; Townsend and Levy
1990). In contrast, women display prosocial behaviors
(Griskevicius et al. 2007) and conformity with men’s pref-
erences (Hasford et al. 2018) to signal their kindness, help-
fulness, and agreeableness, which they believe men value
(Campbell 2002; Hornsey et al. 2015). Thus, extant work
presumes that women do not use luxury goods in their rela-
tionship formation pursuits; this presumes no effect of the
mating motive on women’s luxury consumption
(Griskevicius et al. 2007; Wang and Griskevicius 2014).
In the present research, we challenge this assumption by
taking a closer look at distinct priorities that individuals
may have when pursuing a romantic relationship. We argue
that beyond the typical arousal and unilateral desire to find
(any) mate, which characterizes the mating motive exam-
ined in prior research (Chen, Zheng, and Zhang 2016;
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
Griskevicius et al. 2007; Li et al. 2012), individuals may
have more specific priorities in some romantic contexts to
support their broader mating objective. Specifically,
enriching prior work on the broad conceptualization of
consumers’ mating motive as a unilateral desire to procure
(any) mate, we posit that when individuals face excessive
mating options (e.g., when women receive a lot of roman-
tic attention), they may prioritize narrowing down their ro-
mantic options and deterring undesirable pursuers. We
conceptualize this as a mate screening motive and propose
that it has unique implications for consumption vis-a-vis
the more general mating motive considered in previous
studies (Griskevicius et al. 2007; Wang and Griskevicius
2014).
Women’s Mate Screening Motive during
Romantic Relationship Formation
Although selecting a suitable romantic partner who
meets an individual’s expectations is a prevalent challenge
in relationship formation (Buss and Schmitt 1993), it is
more relevant for women than men based on parental in-
vestment theory from evolutionary psychology (Trivers
1972). The main proposition of this theory is that the sex
that invests more in offspring is the chooser during rela-
tionship formation, whereas the sex that invests less is the
pursuer and has to compete more for mating opportunities.
Because women typically invest more time and effort in
parenting (childbearing and childcare) (Buss and Schmitt
1993; Kenrick et al. 1993; Saad et al. 2009; Trivers 1972)
across cultures (Katz-Wise, Priess, and Hyde 2010; Li,
Haws, and Griskevicius 2019) and throughout history
(Ferriman, Lubinski, and Benbow 2009), they cannot af-
ford to mate with just anyone and are therefore prone to be
the chooser in the mating market (Fletcher et al. 2014;
Saad et al. 2009).
As choosers, women tend to be more passive in early ro-
mantic encounters and often receive more mating opportu-
nities than men (Clark, Shaver, and Abrahams 1999). This
presence of abundant mating opportunities requires women
to be more efficient at assessing their mating options and
to be more prudent and selective when starting a romantic
relationship. Evidence consistently suggests that, compared
to men, women invest more effort in searching for informa-
tion about potential partners (Saad et al. 2009), they are
more sensitive to negative information about prospective
partners (Saad and Gill 2014), and they are less interested
in further contact with potential pursuers (Fletcher et al.
2014; Perilloux, Easton, and Buss 2012). In sum, we posit
that the mate screening motive—that is, the desire to nar-
row down potential romantic options and deter undesirable
pursuers—is particularly relevant to women compared to
men in early stages of romantic relationship formation. A
pilot study (web appendix B) provided empirical support
for this proposition. Next, we delineate the consequences
305
of the mate screening motive for women’s consumption
behavior, as well as the relevant boundary conditions.
Consequences of Mate Screening Motive for
Women’s Luxury Consumption
As argued above, in the early stages of romantic rela-
tionship formation, women often encounter situations in
which they receive a lot of attention from many potential
pursuers. This may happen, for example, when there is a
higher proportion of single men relative to single women
in the environment due to a male-biased sex ratio (Durante
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et al. 2012). In such situations, women’s mate screening
motive would be activated and they would need to narrow
down their romantic options (Regan 1998; Stone,
Shackelford, and Buss 2007). However, faced with exces-
sive mating options, women may experience choice over-
load (Chernev, Böckenholt, and Goodman 2015) and find
it difficult to identify the most suitable partner (D’Angelo
and Toma 2017), due to the amount of time and effort that
carefully vetting each option would require (Chernev et al.
2015). As a result, women may employ tactics to aid the
screening process. For example, they may prioritize certain
characteristics of men over others and form ranking stand-
ards to facilitate the selection process (Li et al. 2002).
Faced with limited time for screening, women may focus
on fewer characteristics of men in order to increase screen-
ing efficiency (Hou, Shu, and Fang 2022).
We propose that as one strategy to screen out and deter
undesirable pursuers, women may signal their high mating
standards by engaging in luxury consumption. We inte-
grate two streams of research to support this proposition.
First, evolutionary psychology highlights the priority that
women assign to the economic standing and resources of
potential romantic partners. Studies document that, regard-
less of a woman’s own income and occupation, she will
consider men’s financial capability to be one of the most
important criteria when evaluating romantic prospects
(Buss 1989; Buss and Schmitt 1993; Campbell and
Fletcher 2015; Kenrick et al. 1990; Townsend 1989;
Walter et al. 2020; Wiederman and Allgeier 1992).
Second, luxury research highlights two characteristics of
luxury products that make them well suited for signaling
women’s high standards, particularly in the financial do-
main. Namely, luxury products have a high price tag and,
thereby, embody owners’ high income and affluence (Goor
et al. 2020; Ordabayeva and Chandon 2011; Rucker and
Galinsky 2008). Luxury products are also distant from the
masses and exclusive at multiple levels (Berger and Ward
2010; Han, Nunes, and Drèze 2010), including in selective
production processes, customer service, and distribution
strategies that limit product supply to grant access only to a
limited segment of consumers who can afford it (Dion and
Borraz 2017; Han et al. 2010; Wang 2021). Thus, by sport-
ing a luxury product in a mating context, a woman may
306
signal that she is highly selective (i.e., “out of your league”
for the masses of suitors). That is, because consumption
choices often indicate what consumers value, particularly
in symbolic domains (Escalas and Bettman 2005), wom-
en’s luxury consumption may signal to potential mates the
woman’s prioritization and expectations of high financial
capability in a romantic partner and, hence, their availabil-
ity only to a limited set of pursuers who are financially
sound. Formally, we hypothesize:
H1: Activating a strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive
increases women’s desire for luxury consumption.
Boundary Conditions
We propose three theory-driven boundary conditions
that illuminate the mechanism through which a mate
screening motive influences women’s luxury consumption
in the relationship formation stage. Specifically, we exam-
ine the moderating effects of the presence of an external
screening tool, the quality of men in the mating environ-
ment, and the salience of a selection (vs. rejection)
mindset.
Presence of an External Screening Tool. If the ratio-
nale for women’s luxury consumption in the relationship
formation stage is to screen potentially undesirable pur-
suers, then when unsuitable mating options are eliminated
externally, the need to further engage in screening through
luxury consumption should be attenuated. Consumers have
opportunities to leverage such external screening tools in
today’s dating marketplace. For example, a popular dating
app, Tinder, offers filters based on dating candidates’ de-
mographic characteristics. Some dating services specifi-
cally screen users on their financial capability. For
example, the League platform scrutinizes applicants’
LinkedIn profiles (e.g., education, occupation) and individ-
ually screens applicants before deciding whether or not to
accept them. We propose that in the presence of such exter-
nal screening tools, the focal effect of the mate screening
motive on women’s luxury consumption will be
attenuated.
H2: When external screening tools are present (vs. absent),
the effect of a strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive on
women’s desire for luxury consumption is attenuated.
Quality of Men. When faced with many mating oppor-
tunities during early romantic encounters, women need to
screen pursuers because it is unclear to them which men
meet their mating standards and which men do not. In other
words, women engage in the screening process to deter un-
desirable pursuers, as they may assume that the abundant
mating pool includes candidates of mixed quality (Lenton
and Francesconi 2011). This assumption aligns with
decision-making studies suggesting that the presence of
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
abundant options (e.g., a large assortment, excessive
search) can increase consumers’ uncertainty about quality,
and lower their confidence in the quality of their choices
(Chernev 2003; Diehl 2005; Malhotra 1982). Therefore,
we reason that if the quality of the mating pool is known to
be high, then the need to further eliminate pursuers who do
not meet the woman’s standards should be attenuated.
Accordingly, women’s need to engage in luxury consump-
tion as a screening tool is reduced.
H3: When the quality of men in the mating pool is known
to be high (vs. mixed), the effect of a strong (vs. weak) mate
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screening motive on women’s desire for luxury consumption
is attenuated.
Selection Mindset. We posit that the mate screening
motive assumes that women prioritize deterring or elimi-
nating certain (undesirable) pursuers when faced with
abundant choices. This logic of elimination embodies a re-
jection mindset that emerges in certain decision contexts.
In particular, decision-making research suggests that con-
sumers tend to adopt a rejection mindset when choosing
from large choice sets (Bettman, Luce, and Payne 1998).
We propose that mating contexts featuring excessive mat-
ing options may naturally induce such a mindset in women
and that luxury consumption is their preferred option elimi-
nation tool. However, consumers may also be externally
prompted to employ a different mindset when choosing
from large option sets. Specifically, externally inducing a
selection mindset by asking consumers to identify an op-
tion that they like (vs. a rejection mindset whereby they
identify options that they dislike) can create deviations in
consumers’ evaluations of available options and yield dis-
tinct behaviors and outcomes (Ross, Meloy, and Bolton
2021). In the romantic context, externally prompting a se-
lection mindset in women may lead them to exhibit behav-
iors focused on keeping desirable options vis-a-vis a
rejection mindset, which prompts the elimination of unde-
sirable partners (screening). Because luxury consumption
helps screen men who do not meet women’s standards, we
predict that in contexts that activate a mate screening mo-
tive, externally inducing a selection (vs. rejection) mindset
may attenuate women’s interest in luxury consumption.
H4: When a selection (vs. rejection) mindset is induced, the
effect of a strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive on wom-
en’s desire for luxury consumption is attenuated.
OVERVIEW OF STUDIES
Six studies and two follow-ups tested our theory using
hypothetical and consequential choices in the field and in
controlled settings across different cultures (U.S. and
China) and populations, including actual single female cus-
tomers of a real-world dating service. Study 1
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
demonstrated that a stronger mate screening motive among
actual female customers of a real-world dating service led
to women’s stronger preference for luxury brands. Study 2
tested hypothesis 1 in a controlled lab setting and showed
the proposed effect is driven by the positive effect on lux-
ury consumption of a stronger mate screening motive,
rather than the negative effect of a weaker mate screening
motive. Studies 3–5 explored the three theory-driven
boundary conditions (hypotheses 2–4). They showed that
the effect is attenuated when external screening tools are
present (vs. absent) (study 3), the quality of men is high
(vs. mixed) (study 4), and a selection (vs. rejection) mind-
set is externally induced (study 5). The studies also com-
pared the role of the screening motive within a mating vis-
a-vis a non-mating context and showed that the proposed
effect of screening on luxury consumption is unique to
mating environments. Finally, to reconcile our propositions
with prior work on the link between women’s mate guard-
ing motives and luxury preferences (Wang and
Griskevicius 2014), study 6 contrasted the effect on the de-
sire for luxury consumption of single women’s mate
screening motive in the relationship formation stage vis-a-
vis non-single women’s mate guarding motive in the rela-
tionship maintenance stage.
Following prior research on romantic relationships and
consumer behavior, all studies except study 6 a priori
recruited heterosexual women, who have been the focus of
relevant theories, and thus enabled the tests of our theoreti-
cal predictions. In study 6, we included all women and
measured their sexual orientation instead of a priori screen-
ing them. We found that the results did not change if we
excluded non-heterosexual participants from the analyses
(web appendix H). In the General Discussion, we discuss
the potential theoretical implications of sexual orientation
as an important direction for future research.
STUDY 1: PREFERENCE FOR LUXURY
CONSUMPTION AMONG FEMALE
CUSTOMERS OF A DATING SERVICE
Study 1 examined the effect of a mate screening motive
on single women’s preferences for luxury products (hy-
pothesis 1) in a field setting. We collaborated with a dating
agency in China that works with over 40,000 heterosexual
singles to help them in their quest for love. The agency
organizes singles events in exchange for a membership fee.
In this study, we induced a strong (vs. weak) mate screen-
ing motive by varying the number of potential mating
options that women faced in a dating context.
Method
Participants and Design. The study was conducted 1
week before Chinese Valentine’s Day (July 7). Dating
agency staff approached female subscribers through an
307
online messaging platform that the agency frequently uses
to contact their subscribers. Women were asked to provide
feedback about a future singles event for Chinese
Valentine’s Day. A total of 172 women (Mage ¼ 31.74,
SD ¼ 7.88) completed the study in exchange for a small
monetary compensation (10 RMB/about $1.40). The study
used a two-cell (mate screening motive: strong vs. weak)
between-subjects design.
Motive Manipulation. Participants read a description of
an offline singles event on Chinese Valentine’s Day. To in-
duce a strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive, we varied
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the sex ratio (Durante et al. 2012; Griskevicius et al. 2012)
and the communication rules for attendees at the described
event. In the strong mate screening motive condition, par-
ticipants read that there would be two men for every
woman at the event, that during the event men could send
one message to the three women in whom they were the
most interested, and that women would be obligated to re-
spond. This indicated that each woman would likely re-
ceive attention from many men and would be obliged to
communicate with each pursuer, which should trigger a
stronger mate screening motive. In the weak mate screen-
ing motive condition, participants read that there would be
one man for every woman at the event, that men could
send a message to one woman in whom they were the most
interested, and that women could choose not to respond.
This indicated that, in this dating context, women would
receive less attention from men, which should trigger a
weaker mate screening motive.
Luxury Consumption Measures. Two measures cap-
tured participants’ preference for luxury consumption.
First, participants indicated their preference for luxury (vs.
non-luxury) brands to be featured in a promotion for a new
shopping website that targeted their segment. Participants
read that the dating agency was considering hosting a
Valentine’s Day event sponsored by a new shopping web-
site. Participants indicated which type of brands they
would be more interested in seeing featured in the web-
site’s advertisements (1 ¼ high-quality regular brands,
7 ¼ luxury designer brands).
Participants then made an incentive-compatible choice.
They were told that they would be entered into a lottery for
a 1,000 RMB (about $150) gift card as an additional re-
ward for participation. Participants indicated which type of
brand they would like the gift card to be from if they won
the lottery (1 ¼ a luxury brand, such as Chanel, Dior, or
Louis Vuitton; vs. 0 ¼ a mid-level brand, such as
Maybelline, Mo&Co., or Lily). At the end of the study, one
participant was randomly selected to receive the gift card.
Results and Discussion
Pre-Test. A pre-test (N ¼ 150 females, Mage ¼ 23.04,
SD ¼ 2.89) confirmed the effectiveness of the
308
manipulation. The strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive
manipulation bolstered the mate screening motive (Mstrong
¼ 5.48, SD ¼ 0.88 vs. Mweak ¼ 4.92, SD ¼ 1.15, F(1, 148)
¼ 11.03, p ¼ .001, gP2 ¼ 0.069). (See web appendix C for
full details.)
Luxury Consumption. Participants expressed a signifi-
cantly stronger preference for luxury brands in the strong
(vs. weak) mate screening motive condition, both for the
website promotion (Mstrong ¼ 4.47, SD ¼ 1.96 vs. Mweak ¼
3.72, SD ¼ 1.89, F(1, 170) ¼ 6.53, p ¼ .012, gP2 ¼ 0.037)
and the incentive-compatible gift card choice (Mstrong vs.
Mweak ¼ 48.72% vs. 32.98%, v2 (1) ¼ 4.40, p ¼ .043, u ¼
0.160). These findings provided support for the effect (hy-
pothesis 1) in the context of consequential and hypothetical
preferences for luxury brands in a population of single
women who were actually seeking to form a romantic
relationship.
STUDY 2: COMPARISON TO A NON-
MATING CONTROL
Study 2 had two objectives. First, the study used a con-
trolled experimental setting to compare the effect of a
strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive to a non-mating
control condition (hypothesis 1). This allowed us to test
whether the focal phenomenon emerges because the strong
mate screening motive increases women’s luxury con-
sumption or because the weak mate screening motive
decreases it. Second, the study tested one potential alterna-
tive explanation: that attention from too many men
increases luxury consumption because it induces negative
mood (Makkar and Yap 2018). To consider this possibility,
the non-mating control condition also induced negative
mood.
Method
Participants and Design. A total of 302 single hetero-
sexual women (Mage ¼ 27.55, SD ¼ 10.45) participated in
the study on Prolific Academic. The study used a three-cell
(mate screening motive: strong vs. weak vs. non-mating
control) between-subjects design.
Motive Manipulation. In line with prior marketing
studies that used scenario-based mating manipulations
(Dahl et al. 2009; Wang and Griskevicius 2014; Yang et al.
2019), we asked participants to read and visualize a sce-
nario that induced a certain motive (web appendix E). In
the strong mate screening motive condition, participants
read about being single, attending a singles event, and re-
ceiving an overwhelming amount of attention from men at
the event. In the weak mate screening motive condition,
participants read a scenario from prior research
(Griskevicius et al. 2007; Wang and Griskevicius 2014)
about being single, attending a singles event, and meeting
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
and spending time with someone to whom they felt imme-
diately attracted at the event. In the non-mating control
condition, in line with extant work (Griskevicius, Cialdini,
and Kenrick 2006; Griskevicius et al. 2007), participants
read about wanting to make new friends, going to a movie
with potential candidates, losing the tickets, and missing
the movie. This condition sought to rule out the role of
negative mood.
Luxury Consumption Measures. Participants read that
1 week after the described event, they would be attending a
similar event for which they were buying an outfit. Two
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items captured their interest in luxury consumption. One
item asked participants to indicate whether they would
shop for an outfit at a mall mostly featuring luxurious de-
signer brands (e.g., Louis Vuitton, Burberry) or a mall
mostly featuring high-quality everyday fashion brands
(e.g., ASOS, Zara) (1 ¼ high-quality everyday brands,
7 ¼ luxury designer brands). The other item asked partici-
pants to indicate whether their outfit for the event would
feature more items from luxury designer brands versus af-
fordable high-quality brands (1 ¼ definitely more from af-
fordable high-quality everyday brands; 7 ¼ definitely more
from luxury designer brands).
Results
Pre-Test. A pre-test (N ¼ 150 females, Mage ¼ 27.14,
SD ¼ 11.07) confirmed the effectiveness of our manipula-
tion. Participants had a significantly stronger mate screen-
ing motive in the strong mate screening motive condition
than in the other two conditions (Mstrong ¼ 5.64, SD ¼ 1.05
vs. Mweak ¼ 4.93, SD ¼ 1.13, t(147) ¼ 2.81, p ¼ .006,
Cohen’s d ¼ 0.55; Mstrong ¼ 5.64, SD ¼ 1.05 vs. Mcontrol ¼
2.34, SD ¼ 1.63, t(147) ¼ 12.86, p < .001, Cohen’s
d ¼ 2.58). This confirmed the success of our manipulation
in triggering the mate screening motive. In addition, the
strong mate screening motive condition and the non-
mating control condition did not differ from each other in
negative mood (Mstrong ¼ 3.05, SD ¼ 1.22 vs. Mcontrol ¼
2.87, SD ¼ 1.16, t(147) ¼ 0.84, p ¼ .401, Cohen’s d ¼
0.17). This minimized the role of negative mood as a po-
tential alternative explanation. (Web appendix E provides
the full details of the pre-test.)
Luxury Consumption. An analysis of variance
(ANOVA) on preference for the luxury (vs. non-luxury)
mall with motive as a fixed factor (mate screening motive:
strong vs. weak vs. non-mating control) revealed a signifi-
cant effect (F(2, 299) ¼ 7.14, p ¼ .001, g2p ¼ 0.046).
Women had a significantly stronger preference for the lux-
ury mall in the strong mate screening motive condition
(Mstrong ¼ 3.13, SD ¼ 1.91) than in the weak mate screen-
ing motive condition (Mweak ¼ 2.41, SD ¼ 1.76, t(299) ¼
2.84, p ¼ .005, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.41) or the non-mating con-
trol condition (Mcontrol ¼ 2.25, SD ¼ 1.63, t(299) ¼ 3.57,
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
p < .001, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.50). This was consistent with hy-
pothesis 1. There was no difference between the weak
mate screening motive and the non-mating control condi-
tions (t(299) ¼ 0.65, p ¼ .516, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.09).
An ANOVA on preference for luxury (vs. non-luxury)
items in the outfit also revealed a significant effect (F(2,
299) ¼ 6.64, p ¼ .002, g2p ¼ 0.042). Women had a signifi-
cantly stronger preference for luxury items in the strong
mate screening motive condition (Mstrong ¼ 3.15,
SD ¼ 1.72) than in the weak mate screening motive condi-
tion (Mweak ¼ 2.53, SD ¼ 1.74, t(299) ¼ 2.66, p ¼ .008,
Cohen’s d ¼ 0.38) or the non-mating control (Mcontrol ¼
2.36, SD ¼ 1.46, t(299) ¼ 3.45, p ¼ .001, Cohen’s d ¼
0.48). The weak mate screening motive and the control
conditions did not significantly differ from each other
(t(299) ¼ 0.71, p ¼ .479, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.10).
Discussion
Study 2 included a control condition to corroborate how
the strong (vs. weak) mate screening motive drives wom-
en’s luxury consumption to facilitate their romantic pur-
suits. The results confirmed that the effect emerges
because a strong mate screening motive increases women’s
luxury consumption, and not because a weak mate screen-
ing motive reduces it. Importantly, study 2 minimized the
role of a salient alternative explanation—that is, negative
mood.
Nevertheless, one might argue that another alternative
explanation could be that the mate screening motive ma-
nipulation involves receiving a lot of attention from others,
and it is the feeling of being popular in general, rather than
receiving attention from too many romantic pursuers, that
increases women’s desire for luxury goods. Follow-up
study A (web appendix D) tested this possibility using a
similar three-cell design as in study 2 and a non-mating
control condition that induced the feeling of popularity.
The results supported the role of mate screening, rather
than the general feeling of popularity, in driving the effect.
Studies 3–5 build on these findings to test three theoreti-
cally and practically relevant moderators (hypotheses 2–4).
STUDY 3: MODERATING EFFECT OF
EXTERNAL SCREENING
Study 3 examined the first theory-driven boundary con-
dition: the presence of external screening tools. We pre-
dicted (hypothesis 2) that the presence (vs. absence) of
external screening tools would attenuate women’s need for
further screening and reduce the effect of the mate screen-
ing motive on luxury consumption. We compared this ef-
fect of screening tools across mating and non-mating
(friendship) settings. Specifically, we did not expect the
presence of external screening tools to produce an attenua-
tion effect in non-romanting friendship settings for two
309
reasons. First, friendships are less exclusive than romantic
relationships as romantic relationships are often considered
monogamous while friendships are not. That is, when
women receive a lot of attention from friends, they do not
necessarily need to narrow down their friend options; in-
stead, they can make friends with as many people as they
want. Second, financial capability might not be as impor-
tant in selecting a friend as it is in selecting a date
(Sprecher and Regan 2002). Thus, luxury products are less
likely to be used as a signaling tool in non-romantic friend-
ships. Therefore, this study design would enable us to as-
sess the uniqueness of the focal phenomenon within
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romantic contexts.
Our prediction is not only theoretically relevant, but it is
also practically important. Indeed, tools that ease the pro-
cess of screening potential mating candidates (e.g., add-on
features on dating platforms that limit the audience that
can view subscribers’ profiles) are increasingly popular
and prevalent (Bruch, Feinberg, and Lee 2016; Wolfe
2020).
Method
The study used a 2 (motive: strong mate screening mo-
tive vs. non-mating control)  2 (external screening tool:
present vs. absent) between-subjects design.
Participants. We recruited 395 heterosexual female
college students (Mage ¼ 22.11, SD ¼ 2.08) for a small pay-
ment through the Data Market application on Credamo in
China (https://www.credamo.com/#/). Credamo is a profes-
sional data collection platform. University students are of-
ten recruited for studies on romantic relationships, as
romantic motives are typically salient in this population
(Hasford et al. 2018; Yang et al. 2019).
Motive Manipulation. All participants read that the
study examined how consumers manage their profiles on
online networking platforms. In the strong mate screening
motive condition, participants imagined that they were sin-
gle and were considering using a dating platform to find a
romantic partner. In the non-mating control condition, par-
ticipants read that they were considering using a friendship
platform to find friends. In both conditions, participants
were presented with a list of characteristics (age, height,
weight, occupation, hobbies, favorite brands; see web ap-
pendix F for the scenario) that they could consider posting
in their profile on the platform. All participants read that
the platform was very popular (with over 1.5 million users)
and that they received a lot of attention from other mem-
bers on the platform (i.e., a high number of views, likes,
and comments on their profile). This description was used
to keep the general feeling of being popular comparable
across the mating and non-mating conditions.
External Screening Manipulation. In the external
screening present condition, participants further read that a
310 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH

new platform feature enabled users to screen who could FIGURE 1

view their profile. Specifically, women could set up filters
(e.g., based on the viewers’ occupation, age, and height) to MODERATING EFFECT OF EXTERNAL SCREENING (STUDY 3)
allow only certain candidates to view their profile.
However, in the external screening absent condition, par-
ticipants read that all users could view their profile (web
appendix F).
Luxury Consumption Measures. Participants were told
that they had decided to become a member of the described
platform and were choosing what to display in their profile
on the platform. Embedded within the list of characteristics

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were fashion, beauty, and car brands that women could
choose to feature as their favorite brands. In the fashion
category, the description of their characteristics stated that
they liked affordable brands, such as Zara, as well as high-
end luxury brands, such as Gucci. In the beauty category,
the description stated that they liked affordable brands,
such as Maybelline, as well as high-end luxury brands,
such as Dior. In the car category, the description stated that
they liked everyday car brands, such as Honda, as well as
high-end luxury brands, such as BMW. Participants chose
whether to display luxury or non-luxury brands (dichoto-
mous: 1 ¼ luxury, 0 ¼ non-luxury) in each of the three
product categories.
Results
Pre-Test. A pre-test (N ¼ 200 females, Mage ¼ 21.71,
SD ¼ 2.14) confirmed the effectiveness of the manipula-
tions. The presence (vs. absence) of external screening
tools significantly lowered the mate screening motive
(Mpresent ¼ 5.38, SD ¼ 0.98 vs. Mabsent ¼ 6.11, SD ¼ 0.60,
F(1, 196) ¼ 15.31, p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.072) in the strong
mate screening motive condition. However, the presence
of external screening tools did not impact the mate screen-
ing motive in the non-mating control condition (Mpresent ¼
4.99, SD ¼ 0.88, Mabsent ¼ 4.80, SD ¼ 1.15, F(1, 196) ¼
1.11, p ¼ .293, gp2 ¼ 0.006; motive  tools interaction:
F(1, 196) ¼ 12.40, p ¼ .001, gp2 ¼ 0.060). (Web appendix
F provides the full details.)
Luxury Consumption. We used the total number that
luxury brands were chosen over non-luxury brands across
the three product categories (count: from 0 to 3) as the de-
pendent measure. A 2  2 ANOVA revealed a significant
interaction effect (F(1, 391) ¼ 8.51, p ¼ .004, gp2 ¼ 0.021;
figure 1). As predicted (hypothesis 2), in the strong mate
screening motive condition, women were less likely to dis-
play luxury brands when external screening tools were pre-
sent (Mpresent ¼ 1.15, SD ¼ 1.04) rather than absent
(Mabsent ¼ 1.78, SD ¼ 1.06, F(1, 391) ¼ 16.07, p < .001,
gp2 ¼ 0.039). In the non-mating control condition, the ef-
fect of external screening was non-significant (Mpresent ¼
1.29, SD ¼ 1.06 vs. Mabsent ¼ 1.28, SD ¼ 1.21, F(1, 391) ¼
0.01, p ¼ .934, gp2 < 0.001). The results also revealed a
significant main effect of motive (F(1, 391) ¼ 7.85, p ¼
.005, gp2 ¼ 0.020) and a non-significant main effect of ex-
ternal screening (F(1, 391) ¼ 2.59, p ¼ .109, gp2 ¼ 0.007).
As a robustness check, we also analyzed the data using a
Poisson regression (to accommodate the count nature of
the dependent variable). The results and conclusions
remained unchanged. (Web appendix F provides the full
details.)
Discussion
Study 3 demonstrated the first boundary condition of the
focal effect: the presence (vs. absence) of external screen-
ing tools. When women had other ways to screen out and
deter unwanted romantic pursuers, they no longer engaged
in luxury consumption. This further supported the screen-
ing function of luxury consumption in women’s romantic
pursuits.
STUDY 4: MODERATING EFFECT OF
QUALITY OF MEN
Study 4 examined the second theory-driven boundary
condition of the effect: the quality of men (hypothesis 3).
We examined the role of audience quality across mating
versus non-mating online platform contexts to increase the
practical relevance and implications of our findings.
Indeed, online dating platforms feature a variety of audien-
ces ranging from highly specialized (e.g., Elite Singles and
The League, which only allow certain segments of con-
sumers to join) to less specialized and diverse
(e.g., OkCupid and Bumble, which welcome everybody).
We predicted that in a romantic context (i.e., a dating
platform), when platform viewers’ (i.e., men’s) quality
(i.e., financial capability) was known to be high
(vs. mixed), women would be less likely to engage in lux-
ury consumption due to their attenuated motive to screen
pursuers (hypothesis 4). In contrast, in a non-mating
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
context (i.e., a social friendship platform), viewers’ (i.e.,
users’) quality should not impact luxury consumption in
this way because financial capability is less critical when
choosing friends than romantic partners (Sprecher and
Regan 2002). It is possible that high (vs. mixed) quality of
the audience might even increase luxury consumption in
non-romantic friendship settings, as it might motivate
women to fit in with the high-quality audience through
high spending (Mead et al. 2011).
Method
The study used a 2 (motive: strong mate screening mo-
tive vs. non-mating control)  2 (audience quality: high vs.
mixed) between-subjects design.
Participants. We recruited 400 heterosexual female
university students (Mage ¼ 21.65, SD ¼ 2.63) for a small
payment through the Data Market application on Credamo
in China.
Motive Manipulation. The study used the same manip-
ulation of motives as in study 3. As in study 3, participants
read about managing their profile on an online platform
(dating vs. social), and they saw a list of characteristics (in-
cluding favorite brands; web appendix F) that they could
include in their profile. As in study 3, participants also read
that the platform was very popular (with over 1.5 million
users) and that they received a lot of attention from
viewers.
Audience Quality Manipulation. In the high audience
quality condition, participants read that, based on their re-
search, platform users were of high quality and met their
standards for a romantic partner (vs. friend) (i.e., had
steady jobs in growing industries and higher education). In
the mixed quality condition, participants read that the plat-
form users were of mixed quality: some users satisfied
their standards and others did not (i.e., some had steady
jobs in growing industries and higher education, whereas
others had unstable jobs in declining industries and basic
education).
Luxury Consumption Measures. As in study 3, partici-
pants were asked to choose which personal characteristics
they would like to display in their online profile. Luxury
consumption was captured by women’s choice to display
luxury (vs. non-luxury) brands as their favorites in the
fashion, beauty, and car categories.
Results
Pre-Test. A pre-test (N ¼ 192 females, Mage ¼ 21.86,
SD ¼ 3.17) confirmed the effectiveness of the manipula-
tions. High (vs. mixed) audience quality lowered women’s
mate screening motive in the high mate screening motive
condition (Mhigh ¼ 5.25, SD ¼ 0.73 vs. Mmixed ¼ 5.71,
311
SD ¼ 0.62, F(1, 188) ¼ 6.32, p ¼ .013, gp2 ¼ 0.033), but it
did not impact women’s mate screening motive in the non-
mating control condition (Mhigh ¼ 4.85, SD ¼ 1.14 vs.
Mmixed ¼ 4.76, SD ¼ 0.94, F(1, 188) ¼ 0.29, p ¼ .590, gp2
¼ 0.002; motive  quality interaction: F(1, 188) ¼ 4.66, p
¼ .032, gp2 ¼ 0.024). (Web appendix G provides the full
details.)
Luxury Consumption. As in study 3, we used the total
number of luxury brands chosen across categories (count:
from 0 to 3) as the dependent measure. A 2  2 ANOVA
revealed a significant interaction effect (F(1, 396) ¼ 47.07,
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p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.106; figure 2).
As predicted (hypothesis 4), in the high mate screening
motive condition, women were less likely to display luxury
brands when audience quality was high (Mhigh ¼ 1.43,
SD ¼ 1.04) rather than mixed (Mmixed ¼ 1.99, SD ¼ 1.10,
F(1, 396) ¼ 13.66, p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.033). Interestingly, in
the non-mating control condition, the effect was reversed:
women were more likely to display luxury brands when au-
dience quality was high (Mhigh ¼ 2.15, SD ¼ 1.04) rather
than mixed (Mmixed ¼ 1.24, SD ¼ 1.11, F(1, 396) ¼ 36.08,
p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.083). The results yielded non-significant
main effects of motive (F(1, 396) ¼ 0.02, p ¼ .889, gp2 <
0.001) and audience quality (F(1, 396) ¼ 2.67, p ¼ .103,
gp2 ¼ 0.007). Once again, a robustness check using a
Poisson regression yielded similar results. (Web appendix
G provides the full details.)
Discussion
Study 4 provided further evidence of the deterring role
that luxury consumption serves in the romantic context for
women. As predicted, when the quality of men in the mat-
ing pool was known to be high, women’s need to screen
pursuers by engaging in luxury consumption was attenu-
ated. Interestingly, the study also revealed women’s stron-
ger preference for luxury consumption in a friendship
context featuring a high (vs. mixed) quality audience.
Although this finding is not related to our theorizing or the
romantic mating phenomenon that we examine, it is consis-
tent with prior work on social norms (Mead et al. 2011).
FIGURE 2
MODERATING EFFECT OF AUDIENCE QUALITY (STUDY 4)
312
Specifically, a high (vs. mixed) quality social environment
may create a stronger expectation for individuals’ high-
status consumption due to a desire to affiliate with and con-
form to the elite audience, resulting in greater luxury
displays. This further underscores the uniqueness of our
predictions to the mating context. Luxury consumption
may be used to affiliate with others in the friendship con-
text; however, it serves the reverse function of deterring
undesirable pursuers in the romantic context at the early
stages of romantic relationship formation. Study 5 reports
an additional test of the process underlying the phenome-
non by examining the moderating effect of activating a se-
lection (vs. rejection) mindset in women during their
mating pursuits.
STUDY 5: MODERATING EFFECT OF A
SELECTION MINDSET
Study 5 had two objectives. First, it examined the third
theory-driven boundary condition of the focal effect: acti-
vation of a selection (vs. rejection) mindset. We predicted
(hypothesis 4) that because the mate screening motive pri-
oritizes deterring or eliminating undesirable options, which
embodies a rejection mindset, then activating a selection
mindset that prioritizes choosing desirable options should
attenuate the effect. Second, this study tested our key as-
sumption: luxury consumption is utilized by women as a
signaling tool targeted at men. If luxury consumption
serves as a communication tool, as we theorize, then
women should utilize it less when luxury products are
unrecognizable by men.
Method
The study used a 2 (mindset: selection vs. rejection)  2
(brand recognizability: high vs. low) between-subjects
design.
Participants. A total of 487 heterosexual single female
U.S. participants (Mage ¼ 40.75, SD ¼ 13.27) completed
the study on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk). All par-
ticipants read a scenario similar to study 2 that prompted
the mate screening motive. They imagined moving to a
new city, being single, attending a singles event, and re-
ceiving a lot of attention from men.
Mindset Manipulation. Participants were then directed
to the second task involving a time delay that would osten-
sibly allow their memory of the first scenario to settle. This
second task, which was adapted from prior research (Ross
et al. 2021), sought to activate a selection or a rejection
mindset. Specifically, participants saw lists of 12 products
in three categories (fruit, beverage, and pizza on three sep-
arate pages), and they were asked to select six products in
each category. Consistent with prior research (Ross et al.
2021), participants in the selection condition were
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
instructed to narrow down the choice set by identifying the
six products that they liked the most. In contrast, partici-
pants in the rejection condition were instructed to narrow
down the set by identifying the six products that they liked
the least. Following Ross et al. (2021), to check the effec-
tiveness of the manipulation, participants indicated to what
extent they focused on selecting the products that they
wanted versus eliminating the products that they did not
want (1 ¼ “definitely the products I wanted to select,” 7 ¼
“definitely the products I wanted to get rid of”).
Brand Recognizability Manipulation. After completing
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the mindset manipulation, participants were asked to recall
the scenario about the singles event that they had read at
the beginning of the study. They read that the same event
would be held soon and they needed to choose an outfit.
Participants read that they were choosing between clothing
items from luxury brands versus non-luxury brands. In the
high (vs. low) recognizability condition, they read that a re-
cent consumer survey had shown that the clothing brands
they were considering were widely (vs. barely) recogniz-
able to men. Participants also read that all options that they
were considering were well-designed, high-quality, and
tasteful and that they looked good in all of them.
Luxury Consumption Measure. As the dependent mea-
sure, participants indicated their preference for wearing
luxury versus non-luxury clothes to the event (1 ¼
“definitely an outfit from non-luxury brands,” 7 ¼
“definitely an outfit from luxury brands”).
Results
Mindset Manipulation Check. We conducted an
ANOVA on the manipulation check item with mindset,
brand recognizability, and their interaction as fixed factors.
There was a significant main effect of mindset (F(1, 483)
¼ 358.91, p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.426): participants in the selec-
tion (vs. rejection) condition thought less about the items
they wanted to eliminate and more about items they wanted
to select (Mselection ¼ 1.94, SD ¼ 1.60 vs. Mrejection ¼ 5.06,
SD ¼ 2.01). This confirmed the effectiveness of the manip-
ulation. The main effect of brand recognizability and its in-
teraction with mindset were non-significant (respectively,
F(1, 483) ¼ 0.88, p ¼ .348, gp2 ¼ 0.002 and F(1, 483) ¼
0.50, p ¼ .479, gp2 ¼ 0.001).
Luxury Consumption. We performed a similar
ANOVA on preferences for luxury (vs. non-luxury) brands.
The interaction effect was significant (F(1, 483) ¼ 4.00,
p ¼ .046, gp2 ¼ 0.008). Specifically, high (vs. low) brand
recognizability boosted women’s preferences for
luxury over non-luxury brands when a rejection mindset
was activated (Mhigh recognizeability ¼ 4.81, SD ¼ 2.04 vs.
Mlow recognizeability ¼ 3.92, SD ¼ 1.89, F(1, 483) ¼ 13.57,
p < .001, gp2 ¼ 0.027). However, as predicted (hypothesis
4) and shown in figure 3, activating a selection mindset
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
FIGURE 3
MODERATING EFFECT OF A SELECTION MINDSET (STUDY 5)
attenuated this effect (Mhigh recognizeability ¼ 4.15, SD ¼
1.70 vs. Mlow recognizeability ¼ 3.94, SD ¼ 1.85, F(1, 483) ¼
0.79, p ¼ .374, gP2 ¼ 0.002). In other words, a selection
(vs. rejection) mindset significantly lowered women’s pref-
erences for luxury brands when the brands were recogniz-
able (Mselection ¼ 4.15, SD ¼ 1.70 vs. Mrejection ¼ 4.81, SD
¼ 2.04, F(1, 483) ¼ 7.72, p ¼ .006, gp2 ¼ 0.016).
However, mindset had no effect on luxury preferences
when the brands were unrecognizable (Mselection ¼ 3.94,
SD ¼ 1.85 vs. Mrejection ¼ 3.92, SD ¼ 1.89, F(1, 483) ¼
0.003, p ¼ .953, gp2 < 0.001). These results further sup-
ported the role of luxury consumption in women’s screen-
ing attempts. Specifically, luxury functions is an
elimination tool, and it is meant to be a visible signal to
men.
There was a marginally significant main effect of mind-
set (F(1, 483) ¼ 3.67, p ¼ .056, gp2 ¼ 0.008): women had
a marginally stronger preference for luxury brands in the
rejection (Mrejection ¼ 4.38, SD ¼ 2.02) than in the selection
(Mselection ¼ 4.04, SD ¼ 1.78) condition. There was also a
significant main effect of brand recognizability (F(1, 483)
¼ 10.55, p ¼ .001, gp2 ¼ 0.021): women had a stronger
preference for luxury brands in the high recognizability
(Mhigh recognizeability ¼ 4.49, SD ¼ 1.90) than in the low rec-
ognizability (Mlow recognizeability ¼ 3.93, SD ¼ 1.87)
condition.
Discussion
Together, studies 3–5 uncovered the boundary condi-
tions of the focal phenomenon and supported the proposed
process of rejecting undesirable pursuers through modera-
tion. The final study 6 examines how this function of deter-
ring undesirable pursuers that women’s luxury
consumption performs under strong mate screening
motives differs from luxury’s role in deterring female com-
petitors under strong mate guarding motives (Wang and
Griskevicius 2014). Study 6 thus seeks to further support
the uniqueness and novelty of the proposed effect of mate
313
screening motives and to reconcile this effect with findings
from prior literature.
STUDY 6: MATE SCREENING MOTIVE
VERSUS MATE GUARDING MOTIVE
Previous research shows that women pursuing a mate
guarding motive display luxury products to protect their
existing mate from female competitors (Wang and
Griskevicius 2014). Our research departs from this prior
finding in three ways. First, we examine women in the rela-
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tionship formation stage (i.e., who are single), whereas ex-
tant research examines women who are already in a
romantic relationship and, therefore, are in the relationship
maintenance stage (i.e., are not single). Second, the mean-
ing of luxury consumption is unique in our research. Prior
work on mate guarding views luxury as a signal of the de-
votion of women’s existing partners. In contrast, we regard
luxury as a reflection of women’s own mating standards.
Third, women’s luxury consumption for screening pur-
poses is directed at a distinct audience—prospective mates
(men)—versus competitors (other women) in previous
mate guarding research.
To validate our unique perspective on women’s luxury
consumption for mate screening purposes, in study 6 we
contrasted the distinct functions (screening vs. guarding) of
luxury consumption for distinct segments of female con-
sumers (single vs. non-single). Specifically, in we exam-
ined when single versus non-single women are more
interested in luxury consumption. We predicted that a
stronger mate screening motive would increase the desire
for luxury consumption among single women, but that a
stronger mate guarding motive would increase the desire
for luxury consumption among non-single women.
To activate a mate screening motive versus a mate
guarding motive, we varied the prevalence of single men
versus women (i.e., the sex ratio) in the mating environ-
ment, which is consistent with prior literature (Durante
et al. 2012; Griskevicius et al. 2012). A female-biased sex
ratio (i.e., greater prevalence of single women vs. men) in
the environment should activate non-single women’s mate
guarding motive (Wang and Griskevicius 2014), but a
male-based sex ratio (i.e., greater prevalence of single men
vs. women) should activate single women’s mate screening
motive. We predicted that single women would engage in
luxury consumption more when the sex ratio in the mating
environment was male- (vs. female-) biased due to the sa-
lience of their mate screening motive. In contrast, we
expected non-single women to engage in luxury consump-
tion more when the sex ratio in the mating environment
was female- (vs. male-) biased due to the salience of their
mate guarding motive.
314
Method
The study used a 2 (measured relationship status: single
vs. non-single)  3 (manipulated sex ratio: male-biased vs.
female-biased vs. control) between-subjects design.
Participants. A total of 559 U.S. women participated
in the study on MTurk. Twenty-three participants did not
disclose their relationship status, thus leaving 536 valid
responses (Mage ¼ 32.33, SD ¼ 6.72). Because we assessed
women’s relationship status to identify the effect of the
mating motive, we did not use additional screeners to re-
cruit participants. Therefore, this study included women
from both heterosexual and non-heterosexual populations;
the results did not change when excluding non-
heterosexual participants (see web appendix H). We report
the results without exclusions.
Motive Manipulation. We relied on the combination of
the sex ratio in the mating environment and women’s rela-
tionship status to operationalize different mating motives.
Participants read a scenario where they were going on a
cruise with their family and that they would attend a gala
dinner on the first night of the cruise. In the male-biased
sex ratio condition, participants read that the dinner was
open to all travelers, that there were more men than women
on the cruise, and that many of the men were single. In the
female-biased sex ratio condition, the scenario was identi-
cal, except there were more women than men, and many of
the women were single. In the control condition, partici-
pants read about a dinner with their family and were not
given information about the sex ratio (see web appendix H
for the scenario). All participants were asked to describe
how they visualized the scenario.
Luxury Consumption Measure. Participants were pre-
sented with descriptions and pictures of six black shoe
options (web appendix H) in similar styles that they could
wear to the gala dinner: three luxury brands (Dior, Gucci,
Christian Louboutin) and three non-luxury brands (J.
Crew, Aldo, Anne Klein). Participants were asked to indi-
cate which three of the six pairs they would be the most in-
terested in wearing. The dependent variable was the
number of luxury brand shoes (out of the three pairs) that
the participants selected. We conducted a post-test
(N ¼ 323 females, Mage ¼ 34.31, SD ¼ 14.60) to examine
whether women perceived that a male audience could cor-
rectly recognize the luxury (vs. non-luxury) brand shoes as
more luxurious in the scenario. The results showed that
women believed that men would recognize the luxury
brand shoes (Dior, Gucci, Christian Louboutin) as more
luxurious than the non-luxury brand shoes (J. Crew, Aldo,
Anne Klein) (Mluxury ¼ 5.11, SD ¼ 1.20 vs. Mnon-luxury ¼
4.38, SD ¼ 1.15, F(1, 322) ¼ 138.89, p < .001, gp2 ¼
0.301). This confirmed that women inferred the stronger
signaling value of luxury (vs. non-luxury) shoes to men
(see web appendix H for full details).
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
Relationship Status Measure. At the end of the experi-
ment, along with demographics, participants indicated their
current relationship status. There were five options: “not
dating anyone” and “casually dating one or more people”
were classified as single (N ¼ 279, Mage ¼ 30.32,
SD ¼ 6.95); “in a committed relationship,” “long-term co-
habitation but not married,” and “married” were classified
as non-single (N ¼ 257, Mage ¼ 34.51, SD ¼ 5.72).
Results
Pre-Test. A pre-test (N ¼ 615 females, Mage ¼ 32.88,
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SD ¼ 6.60) verified the effectiveness of our manipulations.
The male-biased condition bolstered the mate screening
motive over the female-biased condition (Mmale-biased ¼
4.50, SD ¼ 1.47 vs. Mfemale-biased ¼ 3.75, SD ¼ 1.77, F(1,
609) ¼ 9.11, p ¼ .003, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.46) and the non-
mating control condition (Mcontrol ¼ 2.99, SD ¼ 1.87, F(1,
609) ¼ 42.50, p < .001, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.90) for single
women. The sex ratio manipulation did not impact the
mate screening motive for non-single women (all ps >
.200). In addition, the female-biased condition bolstered
the mate guarding motive over the male-biased condition
(Mfemale-biased ¼ 4.43, SD ¼ 2.23 vs. Mmale-biased ¼ 3.68,
SD ¼ 2.30, F(1, 609) ¼ 6.51, p ¼ .011, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.33)
and the non-mating control condition (Mcontrol ¼ 2.79,
SD ¼ 2.12, p < .001, Cohen’s d ¼ 0.75) for non-single
women. The mate guarding motive did not differ between
the male-biased (Mmale-biased ¼ 3.24, SD ¼ 1.78) and the
female-biased (Mfemale-biased ¼ 3.08, SD ¼ 1.92, F(1, 609)
¼ 0.65, p ¼ .422) conditions for single women. Together,
these results confirmed the success of the manipulation of
the mate screening motive for single women and of the
mate guarding motive for non-single women. (Web appen-
dix H provides the full details.)
Luxury Consumption. A 3  2 ANOVA on the number
of luxury brands chosen with sex ratio (male-biased vs.
female-biased vs. control) and relationship status (single
vs. non-single) as fixed factors revealed a significant inter-
action effect (F(2, 530) ¼ 5.26, p ¼ .005, gp2 ¼ 0.019,
figure 4). There were no significant main effects of sex ra-
tio (F(2, 530) ¼ 2.09, p ¼ .124, gp2 ¼ 0.008) or relation-
ship status (F(1, 530) ¼ 0.03, p ¼ .872, gp2 < 0.001).
As predicted, single women in the male-biased condition
(whose mate screening motive was salient) chose signifi-
cantly more luxury brands (M ¼ 1.60, SD ¼ 0.78) than sin-
gle women in the female-biased (M ¼ 1.32, SD ¼ 0.78,
F(1, 530) ¼ 5.41, p ¼ .020, gp2 ¼ 0.010) and the control
conditions (M ¼ 1.28, SD ¼ 0.69, F(1, 530) ¼ 7.24, p ¼
.007, gp2 ¼ 0.013). The latter two conditions were not sig-
nificantly different from each other (F(1, 530) ¼ 0.11, p ¼
.743, gp2 < 0.001). This pattern was consistent with our
theory. In contrast, non-single women in the female-biased
condition (whose mate guarding motive was salient) chose
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
FIGURE 4
THE EFFECTS OF RELATIONSHIP STATUS AND SEX RATIO ON
WOMEN’S PREFERENCE FOR LUXURY CONSUMPTION
(STUDY 6)
significantly more luxury brands (M ¼ 1.59, SD ¼ 0.90)
than non-single women in the male-biased (M ¼ 1.32, SD
¼ 0.84, F(1, 530) ¼ 5.02, p ¼ .025, gp2 ¼ 0.009) or the
control conditions (M ¼ 1.33, SD ¼ 0.78, F(1, 530) ¼
4.66, p ¼ .031, gp2 ¼ 0.009). The latter two conditions
were not significantly different from each other (F(1, 530)
¼ 0.01, p ¼ .919, gp2 < 0.001). This was consistent with
prior research on the role of luxury consumption in guard-
ing women’s romantic partners in the relationship mainte-
nance stage (Wang and Griskevicius 2014).
Discussion
Study 6 showed that luxury consumption could fulfill
different functions for women in the relationship formation
stage (single) versus the relationship maintenance stage
(non-single). As a result, distinct features of the environ-
ment (e.g., the abundance of single men) can prompt single
women’s mate screening motive and drive their luxury
consumption in new ways vis-a-vis what was considered in
prior mate guarding research (Wang and Griskevicius
2014).
GENERAL DISCUSSION
The present research identified and examined how an
important but overlooked mating motive—the mate screen-
ing motive—shapes consumption choices distinctly from
the more general mating motive which has been the main
focus of prior research. We posited that the mate screening
motive is particularly relevant for the mating pursuits of
women (vs. men) and that it has unique triggers and conse-
quences (vs. the general mating and the mate guarding
motives studied previously). Importantly, we showed that a
stronger mate screening motive leads women to increase
their luxury consumption as a way to signal their high
315
mating standards to men and to thereby deter men who do
not meet these standards.
Multiple studies provided support for our theory across
different populations and cultures, operationalizations of
the mate screening motive, and hypothetical preferences,
as well as consequential choices of actual single female
subscribers of a real-world dating service. Importantly, the
studies supported the proposed mechanism by showing that
the phenomenon is attenuated when external tools for
screening romantic partners are present (vs. absent), the
quality of pursuers is high (vs. mixed), and a selection (vs.
rejection) mindset is externally activated. Complementing
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the moderation approach used in the main studies, follow-
up study B (detailed in web appendix I) offers additional
evidence of the psychological process by confirming that
women believe that consuming luxury (vs. non-luxury) in
dating settings can communicate their mating standards
and deter undesirable pursuers more effectively. Our find-
ings make important contributions to marketing theory and
practice.
Theoretical Contributions
Past research on consumers’ romantic pursuits has fo-
cused primarily on the role of a general mating motive in
consumption behavior (Chen et al. 2016; Griskevicius
et al. 2007; Li et al. 2012). By doing so, it has overlooked
more specific but important subgoals that individuals may
prioritize in different romantic contexts to support their
general mating objective (Chen et al. 2016; Griskevicius
et al. 2006; Richerson, Mead, and Li 2020). The present re-
search addresses this gap by identifying the mate screening
motive, which is particularly relevant to women and arises
when women encounter excessive romantic attention from
men. We show that a stronger mate screening motive
boosts women’s luxury consumption, and we further delin-
eate the triggers and boundaries of this phenomenon.
Accordingly, our work adds to the limited understanding of
how women use luxury, specifically, and consumption,
more broadly, in romantic pursuits differently from men.
Our findings pave the way for future work on additional
mating motives that may uniquely drive consumption be-
havior in different segments and romantic contexts.
Our work adds novel insights to extant theories on the
role of luxury products in consumers’ interpersonal rela-
tionships. Whereas prior work has typically viewed luxury
as a tool to attract audiences (Desmichel et al. 2020; Lee
et al. 2015; Nelissen and Meijers 2011; Scott et al. 2013),
we show that in certain situations (romantic relationship
formation) and segments (single women), luxury can be an
effective tool to deter or detract undesirable audiences.
This novel screening function of luxury adds nuance to our
current understanding of individuals’ signaling behavior
through luxury, specifically, and consumption, more
generally.
316
Finally, our findings contribute to the broader literature
on the dynamics of mate selection in social psychology
and related fields (Fletcher et al. 2004; Li et al. 2002;
Sprecher, Sullivan, and Hatfield 1994). Extant research has
focused on the mating criteria that individuals adopt and
prioritize. In contrast, our findings establish consumption
as an appealing tool that can help individuals communicate
their mating criteria to potential partners. This is important,
as communicating relationship expectations is a key to the
success of romantic relationships (Thomas and Fletcher
2003). However, direct verbal signals of individuals’ mat-
ing standards can be uncomfortable, especially when they
pertain to partners’ financial capability and social status
(Sundie et al. 2020; Van Boven, Campbell, and Gilovich
2010). Our results suggest that consumption can convey
one’s mating standards more subtly and effectively.
Opportunities for Future Research
This first examination of the novel mate screening mo-
tive in consumers’ romantic pursuits examines how this
motive uniquely shapes the consumption preferences of
women. Women constitute a large proportion of the luxury
market but have been understudied in the literature relative
to men. Our research opens the door to many interesting re-
search opportunities about various aspects of the mate
screening motive in consumer behavior.
Women’s Mate Screening through Non-Luxury
Consumption. Although luxury displays can effectively
facilitate women’s attempts to screen mates based on fi-
nancial criteria, how women may use consumption signals
to screen mates on other relevant factors is unclear. While
the financial capability is consistently reported as a promi-
nent mating criterion for women (Walter et al. 2020), it
may not be the only factor that women prioritize. Thus, ex-
ploring the hierarchy of mating criteria that women estab-
lish and examining how this hierarchy may vary as a
function of individual characteristics and contexts would
be interesting and thus merits attention. For example, be-
yond men’s financial capability, women might value men’s
educational background and cultural capital as much or
even more. In fact, education is an increasingly salient di-
mension of social status that requires substantial invest-
ment and effort (Hoffower 2021). Would women display
their own high educational credentials (e.g., an Ivy League
T-shirt) or their involvement in niche intellectual groups
(e.g., 20th-century poetry club) to detract less educated or
less sophisticated pursuers? Furthermore, could certain
segments of women (e.g., high earners, divorcees) priori-
tize partners’ financial capability less and interpersonal
factors more such as empathy, emotional, and time avail-
ability? If so, then would women display emotionally- and
time-intensive consumption experiences to deter pursuers
lacking these qualities and resources? For instance, recent
JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH
data suggest that women increasingly display pet owner-
ship on dating platforms (Sullivan 2019). A popular dating
app OkCupid reported that 84% of their female customers
highlighted their current and aspired dog ownership in their
profiles (Sullivan 2019). Could such displays help women
detract suitors who lack empathy and patience (typically
required for pet ownership)? Examining how women use
consumption to communicate their mating standards, par-
ticularly within less visible domains (e.g., personality traits
such as kindness), is another fruitful area for future
research.
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Men. Future research can be extended to examine the
role of the mate screening motive in men’s romantic pur-
suits. First, investigating how men respond to women’s
screening-focused luxury displays and how this may poten-
tially impact the romantic consequences of luxury con-
sumption for women would be interesting. For example,
building on a prevalent consumer belief that there is a
tradeoff between individuals’ financial success and inter-
personal relationships and qualities (Goor, Keinan, and
Ordabayeva 2021), men may perceive women who visibly
prioritize men’s financial capability as being open to men’s
deficiencies in the personal domain. This could potentially
hurt women’s long-term romantic outcomes. Future studies
could further explore such possibilities and outcomes.
Second, men may also want or need to screen potential
romantic partners. Examining which mating criteria men
prioritize and how they signal their criteria in these con-
texts would be intriguing. For example, some evidence
suggests that men value women’s physical appearance as
well as agreeableness and sense of humor (McGee and
Shevlin 2009). Men who have too many mating options
may display products that signal their high standards for
beauty or humor to deter subpar candidates (e.g., by dis-
playing pictures of very beautiful women in their life or
their consumption of comedic experiences).
Role of Sexual Orientation. In the present research, we
focus on heterosexual female consumers, as the evolution-
ary psychology literature suggests that women are the most
likely to act as choosers in heterosexual relationships
(Kenrick et al. 1993; Trivers 1972). However, it would be
valuable to examine screening behaviors displayed by non-
heterosexual individuals to enhance our understanding of
the dynamics of diverse structures and forms of romantic
relationships and marriage in modern society (Masci,
Brown, and Kiley 2019). This interesting issue potentially
yields diverging predictions. One possibility is that tradi-
tional gender roles persist within non-heterosexual rela-
tionships and that relationship dynamics are determined by
which partner takes on the caregiver role and which partner
assumes the breadwinner role (Marecek, Finn, and Cardell
1982). In this case, our theory would predict that the first
partner would be more selective in the mating market and
would engage in a screening process on the criteria that are
CHEN, WANG, AND ORDABAYEVA
important to him/her. Another possibility is that both part-
ners within a non-heterosexual relationship take on gender
roles similar to their heterosexual counterparts (Lawson
et al. 2014). In this case, both partners may play the role of
either the chooser or the pursuer in the mating market
(depending on their sex) (Gotta et al. 2011), and their se-
lectiveness may be determined by other factors such as
specific mate characteristics (Regan 1998). Exploring these
possibilities would be interesting in future research.
Additional Mating Subgoals. Importantly, our work
highlights the importance of examining specific mating
priorities that individuals may focus on during their roman-
tic pursuits. Our findings indicated that, despite the limited
attention it has received in prior research, the mate screen-
ing motive is highly prevalent in individuals’ relationship
formation pursuits and that it is associated with unique trig-
gers and consequences. Delineating the antecedents and
outcomes of other mating motives that individuals may
adopt to form or maintain romantic relationships would be
important in future research. For example, in the relation-
ship maintenance stage, individuals may commonly find
themselves needing to repair or rekindle their relationship
with their partner. Behaviors they display in these situa-
tions may significantly diverge from behaviors they adopt
in the relationship maintenance contexts examined in prior
studies (mate guarding). Future work examining these pos-
sibilities would be welcomed.
Practical Implications
Our findings reveal how women use luxury in their ro-
mantic pursuits differently from men. The results yield use-
ful input on how luxury marketers can market their
products to women (an important luxury segment) and in-
corporate the screening motive in their marketing strate-
gies. In particular, luxury brands may seek to incorporate
the mate screening motive in communication targeting
women (e.g., appropriate imagery, messages, or choice of
celebrity endorsers) (see web appendix A for representative
romantically themed campaigns and product collections by
luxury brands). In addition, it would be beneficial to pro-
mote luxury products on platforms that reach single female
segments (e.g., dating websites, specialized blogs, plat-
forms appealing to this demographic). These strategies
may be even more effective in contexts where screening is
particularly salient or challenging such as in geographic
markets with male-biased sex ratios, on dating platforms
with a disproportionate amount of attention for certain
users, or at dating events with attendees of unclear or var-
ied quality.
Second, our findings can help managers of dating serv-
ices and platforms design an especially pleasant and pro-
ductive experience for subscribers—particularly women,
who constitute a significant portion of their customer base.
317
Given the importance and prevalence of the mate screening
motive for women’s romantic pursuits, managers could
create features and tools to help women screen and elimi-
nate potentially undesirable suitors. For example, dating
sites could allow individuals to configure their audience
screening options and customize their screening criteria as
a way to eliminate subpar candidates. As shown in study 3,
the presence of such features can lower the need for
women to send their own screening signals to potential
candidates; this can increase women’s engagement with
these platforms. For segments who perceive that they are
in high demand, it would be valuable to develop special-
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ized platforms that a priori screen subscribers on certain
criteria (e.g., The League platform focuses on Ivy League
graduates; the Luxy platform requires subscribers to have
an annual income of $200,000 or above; and it playfully
promises to offer the service of “Tinder minus the ugly and
poor people”).
Finally, this research offers useful insights for individu-
als looking for love on the role of consumption in their ro-
mantic pursuits and the potential outcomes. More
specifically, luxury can help women effectively ward off
certain pursuers during early romantic encounters.
However, preliminary findings of follow-up study C also
suggest that luxury consumption can potentially backfire
later in the relationship as it could reduce men’s expecta-
tions about the amount of effort they need to invest in cer-
tain non-financial aspects of the relationship (see web
appendix I). Hence, it may be helpful to carefully deploy
luxury during early romantic encounters and perhaps in
combination with other signals that signal women’s priori-
ties in non-financial domains.
More broadly, our findings expand the current under-
standing of the diverse functions that luxury serves in ro-
mantic contexts for different groups. Our research focused
on women, who comprise over one-half of the U.S. popula-
tion but drive 70–80% of all consumer purchasing deci-
sions (Forbes 2019) and whose share of discretionary
spending is expected to reach 75% by 2028 (Nielsen
2020). We hope that our findings on the distinct role of one
class of products (luxury) in this segment will inspire fu-
ture work on the unique meanings, functions, and outcomes
of consumption choices across various domains in this im-
portant consumer group.
DATA COLLECTION INFORMATION
The data collection for all studies was supervised by the
first author. Study 1 data were collected with the help of
the staff of a dating service agency in July 2019. Study 2
data were collected on Prolific by the first author in
November 2021. Study 3 data were collected on Credamo
by the first author in April 2021. Study 4 data were col-
lected on Credamo by the first author in April 2021. Study
318
5 data were collected on Amazon Mechanical Turk (M
Turk) by the first author in November 2021. Study 6 data
were collected on M Turk by the first author in November
2019. The first author did the data analysis for all studies.
All authors jointly designed the studies and discussed the
analyses and the results. The data are currently stored in a
project directory on the Open Science Framework under
the management of all authors.
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