Facial attractiveness: evolutionary based research

Abstract

Face preferences affect a diverse range of critical social outcomes, from mate choices and decisions about platonic relationships to hiring decisions and decisions about social exchange. Firstly, we review the facial characteristics that influence attractiveness judgements of faces (e.g. symmetry, sexually dimorphic shape cues, averageness, skin colour/texture and cues to personality) and then review several important sources of individual differences in face preferences (e.g. hormone levels and fertility, own attractiveness and personality, visual experience, familiarity and imprinting, social learning). The research relating to these issues highlights flexible, sophisticated systems that support and promote adaptive responses to faces that appear to function to maximize the benefits of both our mate choices and more general decisions about other types of social partners.

Figures

Figure 1.

Symmetry and asymmetry. (a) A shape-symmetric facial composite and (b) asymmetric version. Features and outline are marked on the faces in order to create symmetric/asymmetric versions. The asymmetric version has had its asymmetry enhanced by 50%. Symmetric images are usually preferred to asymmetric images.

Figure 2.

Averageness. (a) A composite image made from three images, (b) the same image given the colour of nine images and (c) a shape and colour composite made from nine images. Image (c) should be more attractive than both of the other images. Composites are made by marking key locations around the main facial features (e.g. points outline the eyes, nose and mouth) and the outline of each face (e.g. jaw line, hair line). The average location of each point of the component faces is then calculated to define the shape of the composite. The images of the individual faces are then warped to the relevant average shape before superimposing the images to produce a photographic quality composite image.

Figure 3.

Masculinity/femininity in faces. (a) Male and female composite images made more masculine and (b) more feminine. Masculinity is transformed using the difference between male and female face shape as defined by creating a male and female composite. Preferences for masculinity in male faces vary across studies, but feminine female faces are consistently found more attractive than masculine female faces.

Figure 4.

Facial healthiness. (a) Composite images of 15 women rated as high on healthiness and (b) 15 women rated as low on healthiness. High healthiness is associated with higher ratings of attractiveness.

Figure 5.

Transforms of self-similarity. (a) Original picture, (b) self-similar and (c) self-dissimilar opposite-sex images. Images are made by using the difference between a composite image of the same sex and an individual participant to make faces more similar to the participant. Self-dissimilar faces can be made by applying the same technique but using images other than the participant.