Factors effecting attraction: Physical attractiveness Flashcards
What explanation is there for why physical attractiveness is important in forming relationships?
- one explanation draws upon the evolutionary theory
- Shackelford & Larsen found people with symmetrical faces are rated more attractive- signal of genetic fitness
- ppl also attracted to faces with baby features e.g. large eyes & small nose > triggers a protective caring instinct (valuable resource for females)
What is the first theory derived from physical attractive factor?
- halo effect
What is the halo effect?
- idea that people who are judged to be attractive are typically perceived in a positive light
What was found to support halo effect?
e.g. Dion et al found that physically attractive people are consistently rated as *8kind, sociable & successful** compared to unattractive people.
- Belief that good looking people have these characteristics makes them more attractive > we behave positively towards them (self fulfilling prophecy)
How do psychologists use the term halo effect?
- to describe how one distinguishing feature tends to have a disproportionate influence on our judgements of a persons other attributes e.g. their personality
What is the second theory derived from physical attractive factor?
matching hypothesis
What is the matching hypothesis?
- The belief that we do not select the most attractive person as a prospective partner but instead are attracted to a person who is approximately similar to us in physical attractiveness
- Walters & Walters (1969)
What is a strength of the halo effect?
- research support > physical attractiveness associated with the halo effect
- Palmer & Peterson found attractive people were rated as more politically knowledgeable & competent than unattractive people
- halo effect so powerful > persisted even when p’s knew that these ‘knowledgeable’ people had no particular expertise
- dangers for democracy if politicians judged suitable for office based on looks
What is a strength of physical attractiveness?
- research support for evolutionary processes
- Cunningham et al found female features of large eyes, prominent cheekbones, small nose & high eyebrows were rated highly attractive by white, Hispanic & Asian men
- what is considered attractive is consistent across diff societies
- attractive features (symmetry) = sign of genetic fitness therefore perpetuated similarly in all cultures (sexual selection)
- importance of PA make sense = more valid
What is a limitation of the matching hypothesis?
- not supported by real- world research into dating
- Taylor et al studied activity logs of popular online dating website
- found that online dates sought meetings with potential partners who were more physically attractive than them> does not follow matching hypothesis
- undermines the validity of the matching hypothesis because it contradicts the central prediction about matching attractiveness
What is counterpoint to research challenging the matching hypothesis?
- However, choosing individuals for dating could be considered a different situation from selecting a romantic partner
- Feingold > carried out a meta analysis of 17 studies and found a significant correlation in ratings of physical attractiveness between real life romantic partners
- suggests that while online dating choices may be idealistic in real life established relationships people do tend to match in terms of PA > supporting MH
