There’s a difference between cocky and confident. Confident guys tend to be considered assholes while cocky guys tend to be classified as douchebags. I’m an authority on this topic, I wrote two books about the difference between the two attitudes.
I’ve long preached to guys that confidence, to the point of arrogance, is a huge aphrodisiac to women. A new study out of the University of Queensland backs up the idea but explains it’s not exactly the straight-up confidence women find so attractive. It’s confidence in a certain social setting. The research even goes so far as to say cockiness even has its purpose when attracting the opposite sex.
A key issue appeared to be whether there was competition for their romantic target.
Women didn’t necessarily find the cocky men more attractive initially. However, when men were given the opportunity to pit their profile against someone else’s, they were less willing to compete against cocky guys, while cocky guys were more willing to compete against others.
Computer simulations based on the findings revealed that cocky men were more likely to succeed with women in a competitive environment like a crowded bar or club, because they were less likely to back down when competing for her attention and more likely to drive away the competition.
So women like a guy with a little cockiness/confidence when compared to the other wet noodles out at a bar. Cockiness in a one-on-one dynamic, with no other men around, isn’t always the best play. Confidence, on the other hand, is always the smart play.
If all else fails, have a shit ton of money.
[via University Of Queensland]