Cougar effect is natural for the affluent female

THEY are women of a certain age who prowl the urban jungle aiming to sink their flawlessly manicured claws into conspicuously younger men.

And now Scottish researchers have found scientific backing for the global "cougar" phenomenon.

The fashion for women over 40 dating far younger males was epitomised by the toyboy-fixated Samantha, played by Kim Cattrall, in Sex And The City as well as by the real romances of stars such as Demi Moore and Madonna.

However, research by Dundee's Abertay University appears to show the "cougar effect" is more than a Hollywood-fuelled fad.

Evolutionary psychology had argued that the protective role of the male predisposes women to opt for older partners. But the new study, to be published in the Journal of Evolutionary Psychology later this month, suggests successful, affluent females are more likely to choose younger, more attractive mates.

Dr Fhionna Moore, who led the study, said: "Financially independent women are more interested in their potential partner being physically attractive than in him being wealthy or hardworking. They will also tolerate partners younger than themselves."

Moore, a teaching fellow in the school of social and health sciences, believes the findings will spark debate about human sexual behaviour. She said: "Research has consistently shown sex differences in mating preferences, with women preferring older, wealthier partners and men preferring younger, physically attractive partners. Our results suggest that, when women can provide for themselves, their preferences become more like those typical of men.

"These findings are important as they show that gender differences in sexual behaviour are not set in stone and implicate cultural as well as biological underpinnings.They suggest that women's partner preferences are dependent upon current constraints."

For the study, more than 150 women were asked to design their ideal partner from a range of options.

Those who indicated their belief in the importance of financial independence expressed stronger preferences for younger, more attractive males and were less interested in older, more industrious partners.

Women who expressed less confidence in their earning abilities were more likely to opt for hard-working males with the potential to offer greater financial security.

Moore claimed the trend was by no means restricted to Europe or North America.

"We previously looked at non-industrial societies and found that women in societies with higher levels of status expressed preferences for physical attractiveness over status or wealth."

The move away from the age-old, older-male-younger-female norm spawned the hit US TV series Cougar Town, in which former Friends star Courteney Cox plays a 40-year-old Florida divorce competing against similar women for the attention of a succession of good-looking younger males.

Celebrities who started the trend include Moore, 46, who married Ashton Kutcher, 31, in 2005 and Madonna, 51, who dated 23-year-old Brazilian dancer Jesus Luz after splitting from 41-year-old Guy Ritchie.

In the UK, film director Sam Taylor-Wood, 43, is pregnant by her now fianc Aaron Johnson, 20, who played the lead in her John Lennon biopic Nowhere Boy.

Scots pop icon Lulu, 61, previously stepped out with Hollyoaks actor Stuart Manning, then 21, and was also linked to Take That star Jason Orange, more than 20 years her junior. She said: "I've had a couple of flings and they've been fun. - younger men are great for that."

Dr Victoria Lukats, a psychiatrist and relationships expert, noted recent studies had shown around a third of single British women in their 40s, 50s and 60s are looking for a partner at least five years younger.

She said: "Dating a much younger man has now become mainstream."

However, last month a study indicated settling down with a "toyboy" can reduce a woman's life expectancy. German researchers warned having a partner seven years younger increased a woman's chance of dying younger by 20 per cent. Sven Drefhal, from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, said: "The mortality risk of a husband who is seven to nine years older than his wife is reduced by 11 per cent compared to couples where both partners are the same age.