Study Finds Being In A Relationship Makes You Think Hot People Aren't Hot

This morning I counted four hot guys on the subway. Not one, not two, not three, but four. Turns out this could also have something to do with the fact that I am very single. And, no, it does not mean I am some sort of creepy, single, horn-dog spinster. It just means I am noticing the hotties around me.

A study conducted by researchers at Rutgers University and New York University found that people in monogamous relationships unconsciously view people they would normally find attractive as less good looking. The study explains this is actually a defense mechanism our brain has created to protect our relationships from any potentially attractive people who might threaten them.

So, how did they figure this all out? The first experiment was conducted on 131 college students. The students were each shown a photo of a potential lab partner of the opposite sex whom they would be spending lots of time with. After that, they were asked to pick from a collection of photos that had been manipulated to make the person either uglier or more attractive. They were told to choose the photo they felt most accurately described their partner's level of attractiveness.

What happened? You guessed it. While people in relationships tended to choose the uglier version, single people tended to choose the more attractive version.

It's not really that hard to believe, is it? I think about myself when I'm really crazy about a guy (it happens every once in a blue moon, I swear). And, to be honest, I immediately have no interest in anyone else. There is no way in hell I am noticing any of those four hotties on the train because I'm too busy staring at my phone waiting for him to text me.

And even if someone does draw my attention toward them, odds are I am not going to think much of them, anyway. How could they compare to the fantastic guy I am so incredibly into right now?!

I love this study, you guys. I love it SO much. It's a giant kick in the balls to every new-age hipster who's trying to convince some poor girl he's actually just not into at all that "monogamy isn't natural."

So, now we can all go be in good, happy relationships and rejoice in the fact that, in the eyes of your partner who truly loves you, there is literally no one hotter. *VICTORY DANCE IN FRONT OF THE MIRROR.*

Citations: "Fighting Temptation: When In A Relationship, Our Brains Perceive Good Looking People As Less Attractive" (Medical Daily), "In the Eye of the Betrothed: Perceptual Downgrading of Attractive Alternative Romantic Partners" (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin)