Stabilizing and directional selection on facial paedomorphosis

Wehr, Paul; MacDonald, Kevin; Lindner, Rhoda; Yeung, Grace

doi:10.1007/s12110-001-1004-z

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Raters of both sexes found the "averaged" faces to be attractive, consistent with earlier speculation by Symons (1979) and suggestive findings by Galton (1878). The finding has been replicated many times (e.g., Wehr et al 2001), including in China and Japan (e.g., Rhodes et al 2001a) and in the Ache (Jones & Hill 1993). This preference is not merely due to the fact that composite faces are symmetrical and have unblemished skin; people find average face shape and morphology attractive (e.g., O'Toole et al 1999, Rhodes et al 1999, Valentine et al 2004).…”

Section: Facial Averagenessmentioning

confidence: 79%

The Evolution of Human Physical Attractiveness

Gangestad

Scheyd

2005

Annu. Rev. Anthropol.

315

214

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Everywhere the issue has been examined, people make discriminations about others' physical attractiveness. Can human standards of physical attractiveness be understood through the lens of evolutionary biology? In the past decade, this question has guided much theoretical and empirical work. In this paper, we (a) outline the basic adaptationist approach that has guided the bulk of this work, (b) describe evolutionary models of signaling that have been applied to understand human physical attractiveness, and (c) discuss and evaluate specific lines of empirical research attempting to address the selective history of human standards of physical attractiveness. We also discuss ways evolutionary scientists have attempted to understand variability in standards of attractiveness across cultures as well as the ways current literature speaks to body modification in modern Western cultures. Though much work has been done, many fundamental questions remain unanswered.

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Section: Facial Averagenessmentioning

confidence: 79%

The Evolution of Human Physical Attractiveness

Gangestad

Scheyd

2005

Annu. Rev. Anthropol.

315

214

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“…Participants were instructed to look at both images and report which image they "liked best" by keying in "z" or "m" for the left or right image, respectively. the "liked best" description served to capture participant aesthetic judgment (linsen et al 2011), and prior studies of feature preference also used this terminology (Fullard and Reiling 1976;Wehr et al 2001).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seeing Dogs: Human Preferences for Dog Physical Attributes

Hecht

Horowitz

2015

Anthrozoös

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this study systematically investigated peoples' preferences for dog physical attributes in images of real-life dogs. Participants (n = 124) completed an aesthetic-preference test wherein they viewed 80 image pairs of mixed-breed adult dogs and were asked which image they "liked best." In each image pair, the two dog images appeared to be nearly identical, but unbeknownst to participants, the images differed slightly in that one physical characteristic had been manipulated. By altering a single physical characteristic in each image pair, participant preference for each of 14 different physical attributes could be investigated over the course of the study. the feature manipulations examined theories relating to Kindchenschema (an infantile appearance, per Konrad lorenz), ostensive human similarity, the process of domestication, as well as differences in attribute size and symmetry. the results showed that participants preferred some features associated with the infant schema-large eyes and wider-set eyes. they also preferred certain human-like attributes: colored irises and a distinct upturn of the commissure, seeming to capture a smile. By contrast, participants did not reveal a preference for physical characteristics relating to feature size, symmetry or the process of domestication. the findings suggest that identifiable physical attributes of domestic dogs have aesthetic value and, additionally, that human preferences for aesthetic differences can be systematically investigated. Given that people attend to and care about the way dogs look, the effects of particular physical attributes on peoples' preferences merit investigation.

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“…Previous studies have presented an alternative hypothesis, namely that average face is not attractive, and demonstrated that facial attractiveness can be enhanced by atypical characteristics that include a degree of juvenility and/or sex-typicality [41–44]. Nevertheless, it has also been demonstrated that averageness has a greater effect on the perception of attractiveness than juvenilization does [45].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived attractiveness of Czech faces across 10 cultures: Associations with sexual shape dimorphism, averageness, fluctuating asymmetry, and eye color

2019

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Research on the perception of faces typically assumes that there are some universal values of attractiveness which are shared across individuals and cultures. The perception of attractiveness may, however, vary across cultures due to local differences in both facial morphology and standards of beauty. To examine cross-cultural consensus in the ratings of attractiveness, we presented a set of 120 non-manipulated photographs of Czech faces to ten samples of raters from both European (Czech Republic, Estonia, Sweden, Romania, Turkey, Portugal) and non-European countries (Brazil, India, Cameroon, Namibia). We examined the relative contribution of three facial markers (sexual shape dimorphism, averageness, fluctuating asymmetry) to the perception of attractiveness as well as the possible influence of eye color, which is a locally specific trait. In general, we found that both male and female faces which were closer to the average and more feminine in shape were regarded as more attractive, while fluctuating asymmetry had no effect. Despite a high cross-cultural consensus on attractiveness standards, significant differences in the perception of attractiveness seem to be related to the level of socio-economic development (as measured by the Human Development Index, HDI). Attractiveness ratings by raters from low-HDI countries (India, Cameroon, Namibia) converged less with ratings from Czech Republic than ratings from high-HDI countries (European countries and Brazil). With respect to eye color, some local patterns emerged which we discuss as a consequence of negative frequency-dependent selection.

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Stabilizing and directional selection on facial paedomorphosis

Cited by 8 publications

References 41 publications

The Evolution of Human Physical Attractiveness

The Evolution of Human Physical Attractiveness

Seeing Dogs: Human Preferences for Dog Physical Attributes

Perceived attractiveness of Czech faces across 10 cultures: Associations with sexual shape dimorphism, averageness, fluctuating asymmetry, and eye color

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