Altruistic men are more attractive to women and they actively compete with one another to show themselves off as the most charitable, new research on Darwinian psychology and charitable giving says.

Altruism may be used by men to attract a mate, in the same way that a male peacock shows off his tail to attract females, Wendy Iredale and Professor Mark Van Vugt, of Kent University said at their seminar ‘Is Altruism Sexy? The Darwinian psychology of helping and generosity’, this week.

“Females are actively selecting for conspicuous displays of altruism,” Iredale told Philanthropy UK. “It says something about the man’s quality as a good partner.”

Women are more likely to think a man they see giving blood or giving money to a beggar would be committed to relationships, according to one experiment that underpins the seminar, and to think that a man rescuing a stolen bag is physically stronger and healthier.

“It’s not about the actual act itself or what the female will receive from it. The act provides her with information about the male as a good partner rather than any immediate benefit,” said Iredale.

Men compete to be more generous when observed by a woman they find attractive, another experiment showed. They donated more to a communal fund over time in the presence of an attractive woman but gave progressively less when observed by another man, or no-one.

The experiments build on research reported by Philanthropy UK last year that suggests men give more to charity when in the presence of women they find attractive.

The seminar was part of a series on Darwin’s theories at the University of Kent to celebrate scientist’s 200th birthday.