The most off-putting flirting dealbreakers included having a slimy approach, bad hygiene, and not demonstrating exclusive interest

What constitutes bad flirting: An explorative study of dealbreakers. Menelaos Apostolou, Chrysovalanto Eleftheriou. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 194, August 2022, 111665. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2022.111665

Highlights

• Identified 69 acts and traits that people find off-putting in flirting

• Identified 11 broader flirting-dealbreakers

• Found that women and older participants were more sensitive to flirting-dealbreakers

Abstract: Flirting is essential for attracting mates yet, many people do poorly in it. Accordingly, the current research aimed to address the question what are dealbreakers in flirting. More specifically, by using open-ended questionnaires in a sample of 212 Greek-speaking participants, Study 1 identified 69 acts and traits that people find off-putting in flirting. Study 2, asked a sample of 734 Greek-speaking participants to rate how off-putting they found these traits in a partner. On the basis of participants' responses, these traits were classified into 11 broader flirting dealbreakers. The most off-putting ones, included having a slimy approach, bad hygiene, and not demonstrating exclusive interest. It was also found that women and older participants were more sensitive to almost all of the identified dealbreakers than men and younger participants.

Keywords: FlirtingFlirting dealbreakersMatingMate preferences