Back in the earlier days of online discourse, it was primarily the “red pill” crowd that emphasized attraction as the central factor in dating. Since then, there has been a major cultural shift driven by social media, and now average women are, in practice, more attraction-focused than the typical red-pill man ever was.

Attraction is not binary. It is heavily shaped by environment, exposure, and available options. Social media and dating apps have dramatically inflated standards for male appearance by exposing women to an unprecedented concentration of highly attractive men.

Women were always biologically inclined to prefer a smaller percentage of top-tier men. However, in the past, their realistic dating pool consisted of perhaps 300–400 men who are mostly from their immediate surroundings such as school, work, or social circles. Within that context, a 7/10 man could be genuinely and strongly desired.

Today, dating apps and platforms like Instagram give women instant access to thousands of men with sharp jawlines, six-pack abs, and above-average height. Against this backdrop, the same 7/10 man can easily appear underwhelming by comparison.

Height is a clear example. In the past, a young woman might realistically encounter only 20–30 age-appropriate men who were 6'0" or taller. Now, within minutes on a dating app, she can scroll through hundreds of such men, and then apply additional filters on top of that.

To be clear, I am not arguing that women should lower their standards.

My point is simply this: attraction is not absolute. It is relative. It depends on perceived options and the cultural environment in which preferences are formed.