Playfulness in Adults Revisited: The Signal Theory in German Speakers.

Abstract

The authors elaborate on the role of playfulness as a preferred characteristic in potential long-term partners recently espoused by Garry Chick and others. They aim to replicate the findings of such research by studying a different culture (that of German-speaking countries) and to develop them further by taking into account the participants' relationship status and individual differences in their playfulness. A sample of 327 students completed a rating scale for desired characteristics in potential partners and a questionnaire for playfulness as a personality trait. Their findings do indeed lend support to the notion that being playful is a desirable trait of potential long-term mates. Keywords: Adult play; play and romantic relationships; play and sexual selection; playfulness; Preferences Concerning Potential Mates rating scale; Sexual Strategies TheoryPlayfulness-despite the lack of a general consensus on its conceptualization, definition, and measurement-as a personality trait in adults has been associated with a broad range of positive outcomes, such as academic success (Proyer 2011), coping with stress (e.g., Barnett 2011; Staempfli 2007), innovative work performance (e.g., Glynn and Webster 1992), and subjective well-being (e.g., Barnett 2012; Proyer 2012c, 2013, 2014b) to name but a few. Although playfulness is a comparatively understudied topic, researchers have used diverse techniques for a better understanding of its content and structure. Some investigators (e.g., Guitard, Ferland, and Dutil 2005) use qualitative techniques, others (e.g., Lieberman 1977) observe behavior, still others (e.g., Barnett 2007; Yarnal and Qian 2011) employ focus groups, and some (Proyer 2012b, 2014a) take psycho-linguistic approaches. Overall, their findings encourage a stronger consideration of playfulness in research and practice because it seems to be a trait of great potential in numerous areas.We often hear as a general criticism about the research on playfulness that it rarely replicates its findings and frequently fails to provide information on the stability of its findings and their general applicability. In an effort to overcome these shortcomings, we aimed both to replicate and to expand a recently published study (Chick, Yarnal, and Purrington 2012) on the signal function of adult playfulness, a study which has greatly contributed to an increased appreciation of the important role of playfulness in mate selection in adults. We hoped to replicate the study using German-speaking participants and thus contribute to a cross-cultural evaluation of its findings. We extended the study by considering moderating variables such as individual differences in playfulness and a participant's relationship status.Testing the Signal Theory of Adult PlayfulnessChick suggested that play in adults might be a consequence of sexual selection and thus serve a signal function in mate selection. This theory and its background received a full review in Chick (2001, 2013a) and Chick, Yarnal, and Purrington (2012), so in this article, we need only summarize the main ideas of the hypothesis. According to Chick (2001), adult playfulness can be considered one consequence-among others-of sexual selection. Sexual selection means that while some traits may not be adaptive for survival, they still can contribute to reproductive success. The two main mechanisms in sexual selection are competition and choice, both of them relevant for males and females. Chick argues that play and playfulness serve as signals for desired qualities in potential mates, serving an important function in mating choice and, thus, contributing to the reproductive success. More concretely, he hypothesizes that playfulness in men signals nonaggressiveness to females and that males see playfulness in women as a sign of youthfulness and, thus, fecundity.Chick, Yarnal, and Purrington (2012)-hereafter shortened to Chick et al.-tested hypotheses derived from this theory empirically (i. …