Why?

Why do you need to understand economics and game theory? OK - a qualification, this could be useful information if you are concerned with the man drought. You need to think of the search for your man as a kind of auction. In this auction some of you will be more confident of your prospects than others. In game theory terms the first group would be "strong bidders" and the latter group "weak bidders." You would think wouldn't you that the "strong bidders" (good looking, intelligent, fertile, high earners) are more of a catch and would consistently win this kind of auction.

But this is not the case. In fact game theory predicts that auctions are more likely to be won by "weak bidders" who know that they can be outbid so will bid more aggressively while the strong bidders will hold out for a really great deal. This is even more important than you may think at first glance. The pool (or swamp depending on your mood) of appropriate men shrinks as the "good ones" are married off leaving a disproportionate number of men who are imperfect (short, broke, ugly, inept). And at the same time you have a pool of women weighted towards the attractive desirable "strong bidders."

The good ones are all married to women whose most salient characteristic is decisiveness.

Hazard warning; Game theory deals with how best to win the prize but it only works when you decide what it is that is worth winning.