Attractiveness

Is “beautiful” or “handsome” synonymous with “good”?

Is beauty only skin deep?• Is attractiveness a

superficial feature?• The survival of a genetic

line hinges on mate selection.

• Like it or not, physical appearance plays a major role in life.

• 82% of males and 93% of females “are actively oriented toward maintaining an attractive appearance.”

Biology and attractiveness• Evolutionary selection:

– Faces and bodies are perceived as signs of mate quality.

– facial attractiveness affects mate selection and the likelihood of reproductive success.

Is beauty culturally universal?• 6 month old infants

turn their heads toward attractive faces and away from unattractive faces (Rubenstein, Kalakanis, & Longlois (1999).

• People in different cultures generally agree on which faces are more attractive (Cunningham et al. 1995; Langlois et al. 2000; Perrett et al. 1994)

Looking up to leaders• Since 1900, the taller

presidential candidate has won 19 of 28 elections– Obama 6’2”, McCain

5’9”– Only 3 of 43

American presidents were 5’7” or shorter• James Madison• Benjamin Harrison• Martin Van Buren

Size matters• For Men• Half of all CEOs are 6’ or

more.• A 2004 study found that

every inch of height adds $789 in salary per year.

• The study controlled for gender, weight and age.

• A male who is 6’ tall earns $5,525 more annually than someone who is 5’6”.

• For Women• Taller women earned

more as a result of their height, but the disparity in income was not as great as for men.

• In a British study, taller women were perceived, by both sexes, as more intelligent, assertive, independent and ambitious.

The “Beauty is good” stereotype• Dion, Berschied, &

Walster (1972) developed the “beauty is good” stereotype.– Children’s fairly tales

equate beauty with goodness

– Popular TV reality shows emphasize vanity

– Celebutards: Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan

• Tabloids and women’s magazines focus on looks

A double standard for attractiveness?• Are older men

perceived as more attractive than older women?– As men age they

may perceived as more distinguished

• The older, rich, ugly guy with a beautiful young girl stereotype.

• As women age they tend to be judged by the same standards of beauty– slim– curvy– wrinkle-free– no grey hair

Facial symmetry• Facial symmetry signifies

biological quality• People prefer others with

symmetrical and proportional faces– Bilateral symmetry: left

and right sides of the face are mirror images

– Proportionality: equally sized features

Asymmetrical faces

Averageness• faces with

average features are preferred

• faces that are closer to average are consistently rated as more attractive

Sexual dimorphism• Dimorphism: how biologically

distinct females and males of the same species are from one another

• For human faces dimorphism refers to how masculine or feminine a face is.

• Greater dimorphism (feminization) is preferred for female faces

• For male faces, results are mixed– More recent studies show a slight

preference for feminized male faces– Women’s preferences shift toward

masculine faces during ovulation– “Men, gay or straight, prefer high

sexual dimorphism in the faces of the sex that they are attracted to.”