Thanks for reading and responding, Allison.

I certainly don’t mean to be dismissive or insulting to any woman who seeks, wants and/or values a man’s attention. Certainly the women in the study did; it was taken a decade ago, so they are women of a different generation than I am, a boomer.

I do question amatonormativity, a word coined by philosopher Elizabeth Brake — “the assumption that a central, exclusive, amorous relationship is normal for humans, in that it is a universally shared goal, and that such a relationship is normative, in that it should be aimed at in preference to other relationship types.” Living in a coupled world excludes and harms those who don’t have a romantic partner, whether they want one or not.

I support your (and any other woman’s) desire to want a man to for how it reflects on you and them; I’d prefer that be an individual desire, not a societal goal.