Factors Affecting Physical Attractiveness

Question 1

What is physical attractiveness?

Answer 1

• an important factor in the formation of romantic relationships.

Question 2

How is attractiveness generally universal?

Answer 2

• there is general agreement within and between cultures about what is considered physically attractive.

Question 3

What is one explanation for why physical attractiveness seems to be so important in the development of romantic relationships?

Answer 3

• evolutionary theory

Question 4

What did Shackelford and Larson find about physical attractiveness?

Answer 4

• that people with symmetrical faces are rated as more attractive.

Question 5

Why is symmetry more attractive?

Answer 5

• it is an honest signal of genetic fitness (it is difficult to fake facial symmetry)

Question 6

What are neotenous features and why are people attracted to them?

Answer 6

• they are features such as widely separated and large eyes, a delicate chin and a small nose.
• they trigger a protective or caring instinct, which is a valuable resource for females willing to reproduce.

Question 7

What did McNulty et al discover about the importance of sustained physical attractiveness?

Answer 7

• the initial attractiveness which brought people together continued to be an important feature of the relationship after marriage, for at least several years.

Question 8

The Halo Effect - How may our preconceived ideas affect physically attractiveness?

Answer 8

• we may have preconceived ideas about the personality traits that attractive people must have and they are almost universally positive.

Question 9

The Halo Effect - What is the physical attractiveness stereotype?

Answer 9

• a widely accepted view of attractive people

Question 10

The Halo Effect - What did Dion et al find about physical attractiveness and personality type?

Answer 10

• attractive people were consistently rated as kind, strong, sociable, and successful compared to unattractive people.

Question 11

The Halo Effect - What does the belief that good looking people have more desirable characteristics lead to?

Answer 11

• it makes them even more attractive and so we behave positively towards them.

Question 12

The Halo Effect - What do psychologists use the halo effect to describe?

Answer 12

• how one distinguishing feature (physical attractiveness) tends to have a disproportionate influence on our judgements of other people’ attributes, for example their personality.

Question 13

TMH - What is the matching hypothesis?

Answer 13

• the belief that we do not select the most attractive person as a prospective partner but instead, are attracted to people who approximately match us in physical attractiveness.

Question 14

TMH - Who proposed the matching hypothesis?

Answer 14

• Walster

Question 15

TMH - What must we have in order to choose a partner who is of a similar level of attractiveness to ourselves?

Answer 15

• a realistic judgment about our own value to a potential partner

Question 16

TMH - What is a word for our choice of partner?

Answer 16

• a compromise

Question 17

TMH - Why do we balance our desire for the most attractive partner?

Answer 17

• to avoid being rejected by someone who is out of our league

Question 18

Evaluation - Research Support For The Halo Effect

Answer 18

• Palmer and Peterson: Found that physically attractive people were rated as more politically competent and knowledgeable than unattractive people.
• The halo effect was so powerful that it persisted even when particpants knew that these ‘knowledgeable’ people had no particular expertise.
• This has implications on the political process: there may be dangers to democracy if politicians are judged as suitable for office merely because they are considered physically attractive enough by voters.
• the existence if the halo effect has been seen to effect many other aspects of everyday life, confirming that physical attractiveness is an important factor in the initial formation of romantic relationships.

Question 19

Evaluation - Research Support For The Matching Hypothesis

Answer 19

• The original study that attempted to confirm the matching hypothesis failed to do so (Walster), maybe because the measurement of attractiveness was not reliable because the raters who judged the attractiveness of the participants only had a few seconds to do so.
• Feingold: Meta-Analysis of 17 studies and found a significant correlation in ratings of attractiveness between romantic partners. (Study looked at actual partners which is even more supportive)

Question 20

Evaluation - Role Of Cultural Influences

Answer 20

• Research shows that what is considered physically attractive is reliably consistent across cultures.
• Cunningham: found that female features of large eyes, prominent cheekbones, small nose and high eyebrows were rated as highly attractive by white, Hispanic and Asian men.
• Wheeler and Kim: found that Korean and American students judged physically attractive people to be more trustworthy, concerned for other people, mature and friendly.
• This stereotype is just as strong in collectivist cultures as it is in individualist cultures.

Question 21

Evaluation - Research Support

Answer 21

• Walster and Walster: repeat of original study (computer dance) but this time students had met beforehand (meaning they had more time to think about the qualities that they were looking for in a partner).
• The students expressed the most liking for those who were of the same level of physical attractiveness as themselves.