The evolutionary psychology of physical attractiveness: Sexual selection and human morphology

Barber, Nigel

doi:10.1016/0162-3095(95)00068-2

Cited by 334 publications

(267 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…As such, it is proposed that humans have evolved cues that signal the phenotypic quality of potential mates (Arnocky, Bird, & Perilloux, 2014;Barber, 1995). For males seeking high-quality females, one such cue lies in the human face (Burriss, Marcinkowska, & Lyons, 2014;Little, Jones, & DeBruine, 2011) as it can provide information about a woman's health (Rhodes, Chan, Zebrowitz, & Simmons, 2003;Thornhill & Gangestad, 2006), and reproductive potential (Wheatley et al, 2014).…”

Section: Men's Preferences For Facial Femininitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of exogenous testosterone and mating context on men's preferences for female facial femininity

Bird

Welling

Ortiz

et al. 2016

Hormones and Behavior

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Correlational research suggests that men show greater attraction to feminine female faces when their testosterone (T) levels are high. Men's preferences for feminine faces also seem to vary as a function of relationship context (short versus long-term).However, the relationship between T and preferences for female facial femininity has yet to be tested experimentally. This thesis examined the causal role of T in modulating preferences for facial femininity across both short and long-term mating contexts, using two separate experiments. Results of Experiment 1 (within-subject design, n = 24)showed that participants significantly preferred feminized versus masculinized versions of women's faces. Further, participants showed a stronger preference for feminine female faces in the short-versus the long-term context after they received T, but not after they received placebo. Post-hoc analyses suggest that this effect was driven by a lower preference for feminine faces in the long-term context when on T relative to placebo.Results from Experiment 2 (between-subject design, n = 93) were highly consistent with those of Experiment 1: men demonstrated a significant preference for feminized female faces in the short-versus the long-term context after T, but not after placebo administration, and this effect was driven by lower preferences for feminine faces in the long-term context when on T relative to placebo. Collectively, these findings provide the first causal evidence that T modulates men's preferences for facial femininity as a function of mating context.

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Section: Men's Preferences For Facial Femininitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of exogenous testosterone and mating context on men's preferences for female facial femininity

Bird

Welling

Ortiz

et al. 2016

Hormones and Behavior

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“…Intra-sexual competition would favour characteristics that enable exclusion of other mate-rivals by force or threat (Puts, 2009;Little, Jones, & DeBruine, 2013;Barber, 1995) or assist in the monopolization of resources that interest females (Puts, 2010;Little, DeBruine, & Jones, 2011b). As men engage in fighting more than women do, it would be advantageous for men to possess the necessary skills to recognize the fighting ability of potential rivals and hence reduce the costs of a future antagonistic interaction and perhaps the risk of losing a romantic partner.…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sexual selection in males could have operated through female mate choice (Little, DeBruine, & Jones 2011a;Little, DeBruine, & Jones, 2011b) and/or through male-male competition (Puts, 2009;Little, Jones, & DeBruine, 2013;Barber, 1995). A great deal of attention however has been put into studies of women's masculinity preferences reflecting mate choice at the individual and population level (Rhodes et al, 2003;Thornhill & Gangestad, 2006;Rantala et al, 2013;DeBruine et al, 2011;Batres & Perrett, 2016), while less emphasis has been given to the effects of male-male competition at any level of study (de Bara et al, 2013;Batres & Perrettt, 2014, Snyder et al, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aggressor or protector? Experiences and perceptions of violence predict preferences for masculinity

Borras-Guevara

Batres

Perrett

2017

Evolution and Human Behavior

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Women's preferences for masculine male partners have been explained in terms of heritable health. The evidence between masculinity and health, however, is controversial and therefore, alternative explanations for masculinity preferences reflecting income inequality and protection from violence have been proposed. This study thus aimed to test the effect of exposure to violence (i.e., experiences of robberies and perceptions of danger) on the individual masculinity preferences of women and men from the capital city of Colombia, Bogota, and surrounding small towns. One hundred and fifty three adult participants (mean age +/-S.D.= 31.3 +/-9.4), all heterosexual, were surveyed in reference to indicators related to health (e.g., drinking water access, frequency of illnesses), access to media (e.g., television and internet access), education (e.g., graduating from high school, attending university) and exposure to violence (e.g., frequency of robberies/attacks, feelings of danger from violence).Participants made two alternative, preference forced-choice for masculinized and feminized versions of both rural Salvadoran and European male faces. We found that men and women exposed to higher levels of violence preferred less masculine male faces, although this effect was only significant for women. Additionally, the effect of violence exposure was more relevant for the Salvadoran stimuli. Violence contributed significantly to explaining masculinity preferences after controlling for participant age, education, access to media, and health-related factors. These preferences may reflect women's strategy to avoid male violence demonstrating that exposure to violence matters in interpersonal attraction.

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“…Women prefer men who are somewhat taller than average, and have an athletic (but not too muscular) and symmetric body shape, including a 0.9 waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and shoulders that are somewhat wider than their hips (Barber, 1995;Beck, Ward-Hull, & McClear, 1976;Cunningham, Barbee, & Pike, 1990;Gangestad et al, 1994;Hatfield & Sprecher, 1995;Oda, 2001;Pierce, 1996;Singh, 1995a). The facial features that women rate as attractive include somewhat larger than average eyes, a large smile area, and prominent cheek bones and chin (Barber, 1995;Cunningham et al, 1990;Scheib, Gangestad, & Thornhill, 1999).…”

Section: Physical Attractiveness and Good Genesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of human mate choice

Geary¹,

Vigil

Byrd‐Craven

2004

Journal of Sex Research

212

199

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This article provides a review of evolutionary theory and empirical research on mate choices in non-mechanisms that operate within species and are principle factors in the evolution of sex differences (Darwin, 1871). These mechanisms are called sexual selection and involve competition with members of the same sex over mates (intrasexual competition) and discriminative choice of mating partners (intersexual choice). The most common mating dynamic involves male-male competition over access to mates and female choice of mating partners (Andersson, 1994). In the first section, we describe why this dynamic is so common and when exceptions (e.g., male choice) are predicted to evolve. In the second section, we describe intersexual choice in nonhuman species.

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The evolutionary psychology of physical attractiveness: Sexual selection and human morphology

Cited by 334 publications

References 60 publications

Effects of exogenous testosterone and mating context on men's preferences for female facial femininity

Effects of exogenous testosterone and mating context on men's preferences for female facial femininity

Aggressor or protector? Experiences and perceptions of violence predict preferences for masculinity

Evolution of human mate choice

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