True Love: Are Men More Romantic Than Women?

According to a new study, more men than women fall in love at first sight.

What do we notice first about a person? Their looks, naturally. And sure, we can get blind-sighted by someone's beauty. So does that mean that love at first sight is real? Apparently, the guys seem to think so.

That's because a new study claims that men are more romantic than women. Of the people surveyed, 48 percent of guys tend to fall in love at first sight compared to 28 percent of women. But you have to wonder: is this really love at first sight ... or lust at first sight?

After all, guys are visual creatures. And if recent science has taught us anything about dating, "love at first sight" is very deceptive. Researchers have proven that romantic decision-making is done by several different parts of the brain. There's the medial prefrontal cortex region of your brain, which makes snap decisions about love (you can thank this part of your brain for "love at first sight") and deeper down is the rostromedial prefrontal cortex, a segment of the medial prefrontal cortex, which considers your true compatibility with the person.

The "instant attraction" mechanism doesn't always match you up with someone who will be the right partner for you in the long haul. This is why we can have mind-blowing sex with someone, but we later come to realize that after the fun is over ... there's nothing to talk about.

So if our brains are wired the same way, why the difference between men and women? I can't speak for all the ladies out there, but as one myself, I tend to see a guy for his poise, his maturity, how we connect ... his looks come second. And if we go off this study, guys seem to (almost literally) take instant physical attraction at face-value. So are they really "romantic"?

I don't think so. If you dig deeper into this study, you'll find a more shocking statistic: a third of men admitted to having an affair. Well gee, guys ... that's not very romantic.

Don't take me wrong, I'm not a woman who thinks all men are dogs. In fact, most of my closest friends in life have been guys. What's more, I have plenty of stand-up, gentlemanly guy friends who are true romantics at heart and have had their hearts broken by girlfriends who cheated on them or took them for granted. But having said that, I've also seen how they've bounced back and moved on to the next relationship. Even when they were in committed relationships, I've heard them joke together about "the hot girl" down the hall in their apartment complex and I've seen them sneak peeks at the female bartender. I don't think much of it. I know that guys will be guys, after all. My point is, they seem to "fall in love" easily (even easier than me), but I don't think it's "love" at all. 

 I mean, how can you fall in love with someone at first glance? How can you truly know someone before you've met them face-to-face and exchanged hellos? Isn't love a bond that deepens over time? At the risk of sounding cynical, I don't think love at first sight exists at all.
If you think about it in those terms, the study makes sense. It's not necessarily that men are more romantic ... they just happen to like what they see.
Do you think men are more romantic than women? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.