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Sapiosexual: feeling attraction for intelligence

Sapiosexual: feeling attraction for intelligence

March 29, 2024

Several decades ago scientists began to look for the answers to falling in love and attraction, something that affects the lives of all of us. In our article "The chemistry of love: a very powerful drug" we review what is known so far about this phenomenon, making a review of the biological and hormonal factors that act in our brain.

However, we must bear in mind that, when talking about different sexual orientations, we are moving in a swampy terrain; In the end, all of this is very subjective and, therefore, difficult to investigate. Maybe that's why the concept of sapiosexuality and sapiosexual are so fascinating .


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Sapiosexual: attraction for intelligence

After knowing the importance of neurochemicals such as dopamine, noradrenaline or serotonin, one asks: "What is it that makes us look at one person and not another? "The answer to this question is difficult," explains anthropologist Helen Fisher, "no one knows the answer exactly, we know that a very important cultural component is involved, and the moment is also crucial: we must be willing to fall in love. to fall in love with someone who has around, next, we fall in love with people who are mysterious, who do not know each other well ".


We are attracted, then, by complex people , those that our mind is not able to cover with a single conversation and that have a very variable repertoire of behaviors. In short, one of the criteria we look for in a potential partner is that can be adapted to many contexts: that is, that is intelligent . This is where the concepts of sapiosexuality and sapiosexual person come into play

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What is a Sapiosexual?

The truth is that people are attracted, repelled or ignored for reasons that are not always defined correctly. For clinical psychologist Mila Cahue, "there is a strong mental component, there are no fixed rules that indicate why we want someone, they come into play from the genetic factor to sentimental learning."


Therefore, we can say that there are many causes that define our tastes at the time of being attracted to someone. The cultural element, the educational model or our own experiences, among other factors, will create our mental map that will be decisive in triggering the chemical cascade of attraction or falling in love.

For example, there will be individuals who will look at the physical attractiveness, money, or fun that the other person can provide. But far from a perfect body, an enviable economic position, or a very desirable social life, there are people who are attracted to the "coconut", that is, intelligence. Whoever is attracted to that quality in the opposite sex, is a "sapiosexual".

Those who admit be attracted to "the inside" , and more specifically, by the intellectual capacity , they usually start their preliminaries with interesting conversations (about politics, philosophy, etc.) and get excited due to the "insight" of another person. The sapiosexual feels stimulated or challenged by the other's way of thinking . Basically, he finds the intellect of his sexual partner as his most attractive trait.

More women than men

What is the profile of sapiosexual people? Although the term sapiosexual applies to both men and women, it seems that it predominates more in the female sex . According to sexologist Miren Larrazabal, president of the Spanish Federation of Sexology Societies (FESS), "apparently we, when they ask us what values ​​we look for in attraction, apart from the physical, we value intelligence very much. This does not mean that men value it less, but they respond before with other variables that are a priority for them ".

In addition, Larrazabal thinks that the decision to opt for an intelligent man is not due to a good conversation, but "a woman presupposes that an intelligent man will have more economic resources, or can have a better career". This would then be a way of saying that what attracts is not intelligence per se, but the greater facility of intelligent men to provide a healthier and materially viable life. Goodbye romance?

However, sapiosexuals are a group very rarely studied and very little known in general, less even than asexuals.Is the ability to appreciate intelligence and originality uncommon, or is it that more research is needed for these people to come to light?

Sapiosexuals, technosexuales, metrosexuals ...

On the other hand, we can also speak of the sapiosexual as that person who considers that the attractiveness of someone is in their intelligence and does not focus too much on more aesthetic criteria, as well as we talk about the technosexuales or metrosexuals, who show their attractiveness through the technological gadgets or the exaggerated care of the body, respectively.

Now ... are sapiosexual people members of an alternative sexual orientation? It is complicated to argue in favor of this idea; after all, a feature of this type is comparable to any of the preferences that people may have for psychological or physical characteristics and that no one considers that they can constitute another sexual orientation. By definition, the latter depend on the sex of those who generate desire or attraction, and it would not be justified to change this criterion for any other that escapes the man-woman dichotomy.

In short, sapiosexuality is one more piece of repertoire of criteria that we use when choosing who we would like to be with. At the end of the day, if we have to spend time with a person, it is better that this person offers us, at least, a good conversation.

Bibliographic references:

  • Cover, R. (2018). Emergent Identities New Sexualities, Genders and Relationships in a Digital Era. London: Routledge.
  • Fernández, Graciela (2011). «Is Humanism sustainable?». Ethics notebooks Retrieved on November 19, 2012.
  • Fisher, Hellen (2004). Why we love: the nature and chemistry of romantic love.



What Do You Call A Person Who Is Attracted To Intelligence (March 2024).


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