Do Nice Guys Really Finish Last?

Has society evolved and matured to the point where the old cliché “nice guys finish last” isn’t true anymore?

A new survey asked people if they think that, in general, nice guys finish last.

25% of people say nice guys DO finish last…

But:  38% say they DO NOT…

And the rest aren’t sure.

Men are more likely than women to believe that nice guys finish last – 28% of men say it’s true, versus 21% of women.

See the full story, here:  YouGov  

But, according to Theresa E. DiDonato, Ph.D. (who is a social psychologist and associate professor at Loyola University Maryland),

“If nice really meant weak and boring, however, then nice guys wouldn’t be attractive.  The classic definition, however—kind, emotionally sensitive, and caring about others—holds great appeal.”

But, is nice enough?  DiDonato tells Psychology Today, “not quite.  The real story appears to lie at the intersection of niceness and dominant characteristics. An experimental study revealed that men who behaved pro-socially—being nice—positively affected women’s ratings of their physical attractiveness, sexual attractiveness, and dating desirability, while social dominance alone had no impact on these judgments (Jensen-Campbell, Graziano, & West, 1995).  A deeper look revealed what happens when dominance interacts with being nice—nice men who also showed evidence of social dominance were seen as even more attractive.  In other words, dominance only makes a difference if a guy has already shown that he’s nice.”

See her full explanation, at PsychologyToday.