Are you the perfect man? A new British study says that 30 traits make up every woman’s Prince Charming.

You may think quite highly of yourself, but are you the perfect man? We mean, really, really perfect?



We only ask because, according to research by clothing company Austin Reed, there's now a way to tell. The company surveyed 2,000 British women and came up with a 30-point tick list of ideal male traits.



Let's be clear. You'd have to be a bit strange or very lucky to tick them all (or even most of them), but at least some of them are grounded in the science of relationships.



So here's why women like a six-foot-tall man who rings his mum and drives an Audi.

Women like tall men, and other obvious traits
So far, so obvious, but why might that be? Well, for a start, researchers at the Open University studied the lives of 10,000 people born in the same week in 1958, and found that the taller the men were, the less likely they were to be unmarried or childless 42 years later in 2000.

Height, like excess muscle, is an indicator of health, and a healthy man is likely to father healthy children. Of course, that's far less true now than it was 100,000 years ago, but that is when these preferences may have been hardwired into female brains.

Quite simply, the study confirms what we already knew. Women are attracted to indicators of health, and whether you're tall, short, skinny or buff, exercising and eating right will get you halfway there.


Women like men on £48,000 a year who drive an Audi
Again, a female preference for money and what it can buy sounds obvious, but these findings might not be as black and white as they first appear.

Clearly, on the whole the women who responded to this survey like money and status (as shown by the Audi). That's hardly groundbreaking. But what these findings also suggest is that there's a limit to their expectations. They don't want TOO much money or TOO much status.

Maybe they're being realistic, because there just aren't that many Premier League footballers to go round. But this was a study of ideal traits, and many women still had rather modest ambitions.

Certainly a nice car is a winner with women. In one famous study, women of a similar age and background were shown a picture of a man in a Bentley, and a picture of the same man in a Ford Fiesta. They judged the man in the Bentley significantly more physically attractive, despite him being, well, the same man.


So why are many women in the new study downgrading from a Bentley to an Audi and from £1 million a year to £48,000?
It could simply be that an extremely wealthy man invites too much competition. All that money and status might be great while you're first choice, but there's every chance you won't be first choice for long. After all, he can have his pick.

For many women the ideal man may have a bit less money, and far fewer potential mates. The new study confirms earlier research that suggests many women would be content with a man who earns more than them, however much that might be. In a study published last year, 64% of women said they only aspire to find a husband who brings home a larger pay packet than they do.


Women don't want metrosexual men
It would seem that the days of the metrosexual man, with his face creams and wine tasting nights, might be numbered.

According to the new study, the ideal man is a lager or beer drinker, a meat eater, gets ready in just 17 minutes, and likes watching football. He also needs to have decent DIY skills.

He shouldn't be too macho though. He should like shopping and be clean-shaven with a smooth chest. Other research has found that women most prefer a layer of short facial stubble, because it emphasises a chiselled masculine jawline. But both studies agree that full beards are not - for most women - a turn-on.

This all may be a fashion thing, of course. Bearded men who hate shopping might be next year's cup of tea.



Women want sensitive men
Finally, the survey seems to suggest that the ideal man might be a bit laddish, with his beer and football, but this needs to be tempered with a sensitive side.

He should be thoughtful and caring when his wife or girlfriend is upset, and be prepared to tell her he loves her (though only when he means it). He also needs to ring his mother regularly and want a family of his own. He might even cry during films.

In other words, women are looking for a keeper. Contact with his mum shows his commitment to family life, and a sensitive side means he'll be there to help out when things get tough with his own family. Being prepared to utter the L word shows his commitment to his partner.


Women want the moon on a stick
Put it all together and it seems British women have some pretty high expectations. But they are also conforming to their somewhat contradictory evolutionary biology.

Classic evolutionary psychology suggests that women want chiselled, toned men for sex. They want those high quality genes to pass on to their own offspring and studies show that when women are ovulating they fancy manly men most of all.

But at other times of the month, they look for less macho, more nurturing men, who might not be as physically impressive but are likely to be around to help bring up the children. Those men might not be the most high status individuals, but they'll have steady jobs with decent enough incomes and won't be flooded with offers from 21-year-old blondes.

So yes, put those two sides together and you have the Austin Reed study's definition of a perfect man. It's not one any of us can hope to live up to in full, of course. But how close do you come?

Here are the 30 traits of the perfect man they listed - do you make the grade?



Apparently, the perfect man is...

1.Six feet tall

2.Muscly, toned and athletic

3.Brown eyes

4.Short dark hair

5.Smart dress sense

6.A beer / lager drinker

7.Non-smoker

8.Wears smart jeans, shirt and a V-neck jumper

9.Gets ready in 17 minutes

10.Stylish

11.Wants a family

12.Earns £48,000 a year

13.Loves shopping

14.Eats meat

15.Clean shaven

16.Smooth chest

17.Watches soaps

18.Enjoys watching football

19.Drives an Audi

20.Educated to degree level

21.Earns more than his other half

22.Jokes around and has a laugh

23.Sensitive when his wife/girlfirend is upset

24.Says 'I love you' only when he means it

25.Admits it when he looks at other women

26.Holds a driving licence

27.Can swim

28.Can ride a bike

29.Can change a tyre

30.Rings mum regularly

Labels: articles, facts, Life, love, relationship

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