Measuring love: Relational mobility promotes calculative mindset in mate choice

In today's Chinese society, people are increasingly "itemizing" their personal traits and requirements when seeking a partner through matchmaking. This phenomenon is conceptualized as a “calculative mindset” in mate choice. We propose that in interpersonal environments characterized by high relational mobility—where relationships are more freely formed and dissolved—this cognitive strategy of transforming mate-related information into easily processed quantitative indicators serves an adaptive function by reducing cognitive load. Through analyses of online dating profiles, survey measures, and laboratory experiments, three studies (comprising four sub-studies) reveal correlational and causal relationships between relational mobility and the calculative mindset in mate choice at both regional and individual levels. These findings extend the psychological implications of relational mobility into the domain of mate selection, offering theoretical insights into how individuals adapt to dynamic social ecologies and practical implications for shaping policies or marketing strategies aligned with contemporary mate selection psychology.