What Do Playboy Playmates Want? Implications of Expressed Preferences in the Construction of the “Unfinished” Masculine Identity

Although the literature on mate preferences indicates that women prefer men with both stereotypic masculine traits, such as strength and assertiveness, and stereotypic feminine traits, such as nurturance and sensitivity, men are encouraged to adopt identities that include only stereotypic masculine traits. This discrepancy produces gender-based role strain for men caught between the desires of women and the demands of social convention. We suggest that the centerfold text published in Playboy magazine provides a useful social infrastructure to help men develop more broadly defined conceptualizations of masculinity. In our analysis of Playboy playmate centerfold texts, we found that playmates expressed a preference for men who included stereotypic feminine attributes in their identities. In the context of attempting to be more attractive to women such as Playboy playmates, the adoption of feminine attributes can be readily justified and help men experience less gender-based role strain.