Just thought this might be intereresting to post here. It's something that I remember coming up in a Sociology class I took, and it's fascinating enough to have stuck with me ever since.
CONCLUSIONS: The phi mask model supports averageness or prototypicality of the face as being the major component of the facial attractiveness gestalt and is a first step in producing an objective system for measuring facial attractiveness.
What this (and some other studies) has shown is that while people can have preferences for certain traits, there are some traits that determine objective attractiveness. This has been found to span across all cultures and throughout time.
The things that do factor into objective attractiveness, for both males and females:
- Facial configuration (the "phi mask" in the link above)
- Large eyes are typically seen as more attractive than small eyes
- Round face is typically seen as more attractive than a long face
- Body ratio ('V' shape for men and hourglass figure for women always increases objective attractiveness)
- Looking generally physically healthy (things like smoking, drinking, and doing drugs can all have a negative effect on one's objective attractiveness as they start to have a visible physical effect, as well as anything else that results in an unhealthy appearance).
The things that don't specifically factor into objective attractiveness, but can be found to be subjectively attractive (the preferential variables), often based on social conditioning:
- Skin, hair, and eye color
- Height
- Weight (note here that being being either too overweight or underweight can both have a negative affect the objective body ratio point above though, making it typically best to be at your natural body weight)
- Basically anything else not listed in these lists
08 Oct 2013, 7:41 am
