Humans Kiss to Assess Potential Romantic Partners, Build Intimacy; Oxford Study Finds

How do you know whether the person is the "one" for you? For once, Science agrees with Hollywood and says that kissing helps people find potential mates and even seal the deal for a long-time.

The study was conducted by researchers from University of Oxford and is published in the journal Human Nature.

It is already known our closest cousins- chimps and bonobos- too, indulge in an occasional smooch, but not as often as humans and definitely not as intensely.

 "Kissing in human sexual relationships is incredibly prevalent in various forms across just about every society and culture,' said Rafael Wlodarski, the DPhil student who carried out the research in the Department of Experimental Psychology at Oxford University, according to a news release. 

There are a few theories that are thrown around to explain the importance of kissing in human culture; one of them says that a good smooch helps people get important genetic information about a potential mate. According to another theory, humans kiss to get their partner aroused while another theory says that pecking keeps couples together.

According to Kory Floyd, professor in the Hugh Downs School of Human Communication at Arizona State University (not a part of current study), kissing and other expressions of love can lower cholesterol levels and strengthen immune system.

For the study, Wlodarski and colleagues decided to ask people what they felt about kissing and its impact on both short and long-term relationships. The study survey included 900 people who answered a questionnaire.

Hollywood seems to be far ahead of science this time as researchers found that women rate kissing as an important factor in relationships. Further, attractive men and women indulging in short-term relationships were more likely to be dependent on "the kiss" to find a potential partner.

A woman would want to take time to determine whether or not the man is actually right for her as producing an offspring isn't easy- it takes nine months and her body goes through several changes. She needs to consider many factors before making a commitment.

Previous research has shown that attractive men and women, who often have a lot of casual sex, take more time to find long-term mates.

Kissing might help people assess a partner through taste and smell, stuff that humans subconsciously pick-up, researchers said.

"Mate choice and courtship in humans is complex,' said Professor Robin Dunbar. 'It involves a series of periods of assessments where people ask themselves "shall I carry on deeper into this relationship?" Initial attraction may include facial, body and social cues. Then assessments become more and more intimate as we go deeper into the courtship stages, and this is where kissing comes in."

Solving the 'Jane Austen Problem'

According to Dunbar, Jane Austen realized that people subconsciously know where they stood in the "mating market" and so pitch their price accordingly. Even in the survey, participants who rated themselves as more attractive were more likely to be demanding and placing more faith in kissing to assess potential partners.

Sex not the only factor

The importance of kissing changes according to relationships, researchers found. In short-term relationships, it was a way to increase sexual arousal, but in long-term relationship, it was a key to maintain intimacy.