Factors affecting attraction: Physical attractiveness Flashcards
What are the two factors regarding physical attractiveness
Facial symmetry
Halo effect - Dion et al
Facial symmetry (Shackleford and Larsen)
Found that people with symmetrical faces are rated as more attractive - signal of genetic fitness that cannot be faked, making it an ‘honest’ signal
Explanations based on physical attractiveness are evolutionary - attributes that signal high quality are naturally selected
Baby faces
Thought to trigger protective and caring instincts, related to the formation of attachment in infancy
This is also an evolutionary explanation as features strengthen attachment are naturally selected
Halo effect
- include a name
Due to the fact we hold preconceived ideas about the attributes of physically attractive people. We believe that all their other attributes are overwhelmingly positive
Dion et al - physically attractive people are consistently rated as kind, strong, sociable and successful compared with unattractive people
Describe the procedure of Walster et al study
Walster et al conducted a study on matching hypothesis. Suggesting we look for partners who are similar to ourselves in terms of physical attractiveness
Male and female students were invited to a dance. They were rated on physical attractiveness by objective observers at the start and also completed a questionnaire about themselves
They were told the data about themselves (personality, self esteem e.t.c) and that this info would be used by a computer to decide their partner for the evening (in fact they were paired up randomly)
Outline the findings and conclusions of Walster et al study
Physically attractive partners were liked the most and more likely to be asked on another date, not supporting the hypothesis
Berschied et al replicated the study and students selected the partner themselves. This time they chose partners of similar physical attractiveness
Suggests that we tend to seek and choose partners whose physical attractiveness matches our own. Partner choice is a compromise - we avoid rejection by the most physically attractive and settle for those in our ‘league’
What are the two strengths
Research support for the halo effect
Research support for evolutionary process
Evaluation: Research support for the halo effect
It has been discovered that the halo effect extends to numerous other spheres of daily life, indicating that physical attractiveness plays a significant role in the early stages of the establishment of relationships, romantic or not.
Palmer and Peterson (2012) discovered that those with physical attractiveness were perceived as having greater political understanding and expertise than those without it. The participants continued to experience this halo effect even after they were informed that these so-called knowledgeable individuals lacked any specific expertise.
There are obvious implications for politics in this. If enough voters find that a politician is physically appealing enough to be in power, then perhaps there are risks to democracy.
Evaluation: Research support for the evolutionary process
Relationship formation across cultural boundaries appears to be significantly influenced by physical appearance.
For example, Cunningham et al. (1995) found that white, Asian and Hispanic males, despite being from different cultures, rated females with prominent cheekbones, small noses and large eyes as highly attractive.
The findings’ universality raises the possibility that sexual selection is helped by a genetically replicated mechanism that involves selecting a partner is based just on appearance. This supports the nature side in the nature-nurture argument by demonstrating that biological factors, as opposed to environmental ones, primarily determine human behaviour
What are the two limitations (Issues and Debates)
Beta bias
Based on nomothetic approach
Evaluation: Beta bias
In contrast, the matching hypothesis can be biassed towards males because it makes the assumption that men and women have similar values about physical attractiveness. However, research indicates that this might not be the case.
Meltzer et al. (2014) discovered, for instance, that whereas women did not find their partner’s physical attractiveness to have a significant effect on relationship happiness, males find their long-term relationships more satisfying when their partner is physically appealing.
This demonstrates that there are substantial differences between men and women in the significance of looks for attraction.
Evaluation: Based on the nomothetic approach
The matching hypothesis is predicated on a nomothetic method of examining human behaviour. It attempts to produce behavioural rules that apply to everyone, however,there are notable individual variations in the significance of physical appeal in a partner’s selection.
As a result, explanations based on the idiographic approach—which examines specific examples in depth without attempting to produce general guidelines—might be better suitable for research on romantic relationships.
