The cougar effect: Women get far less picky about a partner's intelligence the older they get

Most online daters prefer to contact people with the same level of education as them, but a new study suggests that as people grow older they become less picky about it. Researchers based at Queensland's University of Technology, Australia, analyzed the online dating behaviors of 41,000 Australians aged between 18 and 80. The researchers said that humans usually look for similar characteristics and traits in a partner in areas such as age, attractiveness and culture, however, the internet has changed this process. Researchers based at Queensland's University of Technology, Australia, analyzed the online dating behaviors of 41,000 Australians aged between 18 and 80 The researchers analyzed the behaviors of people using the online dating website'RSVP' during a four month period in 2016. Mr Stephen Whyte, a behavioural economist and co-author of the study, said: 'Selecting a mate can be one of the largest psychological and economic decisions a person can make and has long been the subject of social science research across a range of disciplines.