An interesting theory about cougars and cougar dating surfaced last week. A psychology researcher named Michael Dunn isn’t convinced and has gone so far as to claim that the whole cougar movement is a myth!

Dunn came to his conclusion after examining the age preferences expressed in 22,400 singles ads on popular dating websites in North America, Europe, Australia and Japan. He states that he found no proper evidence to suggest that there are enough older women looking for younger men to warrant calling cougar dating anything more than just a craze that has being triggered and influenced by the media and celebrities.

Of course, it hasn’t taken long for a number of self proclaimed cougars to hit back at Dunn. Journalist Valerie Gibson who is the author of ‘Cougar: A Guide for Older Women Dating Younger Men’ says that the recent increase in cougar dating is not a phase or a fad but that society has become more accepting of older women dating younger men. Cougar relationships existed hundreds of years ago but society regarded them as morally wrong and even shameful. Times have thankfully now changed!

There has definitely been a rise in cougar orientated websites and events such as cougar conventions geared around older women meeting younger men. There is a huge market for it and cougar dating isn’t a trend that will wane as soon as Cougar Town goes off our screens because for many, it is a lifestyle.

Judging from the number of cougars who are honest and proud about their dating preferences, and the number of successful cougar relationships, I think it is safe to say that contrary to Dunn’s research conclusions, the cougars are here to stay!

Tags: cougar, cougar conventions, cougar dating, cougar town, Michael Dunn, Valerie Gibson

The cougar dating trend is definitely on the increase with women feeling more comfortable with being labeled a cougar than they would have done only a few years ago. In fact, being called a cougar is something women are now starting to enjoy and feel flattered by because men are quite open about the fact that they find an older woman so attractive, partly because she is probably far less attainable than a woman of their own age.

So what exactly is it about these older women that cause younger men to fall at their feet? Is it just down to the way they look? After all, celebrities such as Kylie Minogue and Demi Moore certainly don’t have anything to worry about in the aesthetics department. However, many men claim that they find cougars to be mysteriously attractive in a way that isn’t always down to appearance, but more so related to the cougar’s wisdom and independence. Cougars know what they want, they are interesting to be around, they know how they want to be treated by a man and probably won’t put up with the nonsense or games that can often come with dating.

Is this therefore a situation whereby the sense of knowledge and experience is more attractive to men than simply looking good? Some men could have the pick of the bunch when it comes to younger ladies but they still prefer to date an older woman because she is wise, intriguing and will likely keep them on their toes!

Tags: cougar, cougar dating, Demi Moore, Kylie Monogue