It Really Is in His Kiss

Men and women rate kissing differently, according to a study of 1,000 American students published in Evolutionary Psychology. Women rated kissing as more important than men did, and continue to value kisses throughout long-term relationships. Men, who reported using kisses to increase their chances of getting sex, also preferred wet, tongue kisses to lighter kissing favored by women.

“Kissing is used by everyone as a bonding and testing mechanism,” according to researcher Glenn Wilson. Yet some men reported a willingness to engage in sex with bad kissers, or to forego kissing altogether. Wilson claims women need to be more discriminating than men, and rely on kissing to assess the status of the relationship. (More kissing stories.)