How to get guys to love chick flicks

Source: Best Health magazine, Jan/Feb 2013; Image: Thinkstock

Before cuddling up together to watch Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams in The Vow, have a cold drink. Why? An August 2012 study in the Journal of Consumer Research found that feeling cold activates a need for psychological warmth, making romance movies more appealing.

Yes, this seems like a strange topic to research, but we’re not making it up. The researchers conducted four experiments involving both men and women, as well as an analysis of online movie rental data. In one experiment, participants were randomly given either an iced tea or a hot tea, and asked to complete a ‘movie preference’ task. They were asked to rate how much they would like to watch each movie and how good they thought it would be. Genres included romance, action, comedy and thriller. Participants sipping iced tea during the preference task rated romance movies higher than did the participants sipping hot tea.

The other experiments supported these findings, and found that not only were participants more likely to enjoy a romance, but they were also more likely to pay to see a romance if they felt cold. You read it here first.

This article was originally titled "There’s a way even guys can get into chick flicks" in the Jan/Feb 2013 issue of Best Health. Subscribe today to get the full Best Health experience’and never miss an issue!