physical attractivness Flashcards
what did shackleford and Larsen find
that people with symmetrical faces are more attractive.
it is a honest signal of genetic fitness
what is a neotenous face
baby face - wide seperated eyes, small nose
triggers a caring and protective instinct
what is the Halo effect
we have preconceived ideas about the personality traits attractive people must have.
who suggested the halo effect
dion et al - physically attractive people are rated as kind, strong, sociable and successful.
this badly influences our judgment of other attributes - personality
who suggested the matching hypothesis
walster and walster
what is the matching hypothesis
suggests we look for partners who are similar to ourselves, physical attractive.
what is the computer dance
a way to study the matching hypothesis - Elaine walster
what is the procedure of the computer dance
male and female students invited to a dance.
rated for attractiveness by objective observers. Also completed questionnaire.
what did the computer dance find
hypothesis not supported.
most liked partner were also the most physically attractive rather than choosing own level
however replication study - partners could choose on varying levels of attractiveness: partners chose people who matched them.
conclusion of the computer dance
we tend to seek our partners who’s attractiveness matches our own.
we risk rejection in selecting the most attractive so we settle for people in our league.
one strength of halo effect
palmer and Peterson.
physically attractive people rated more politically knowelegable and competent than ugly people
halo effect so powerful that even when people knew this knowledge had no backings they still believed it.
another strength
research support evolutionary processes.
Cunningham et al - women who had large eyes prominent cheekbones and small noses rated highly attractive by asian, hispanic and white men.
shows beauty is sign of genetic fitness across the world
limitation of matching hypothesis
challenging research.
Taylor et al - studied data from online dating sights. this very real as data from worldwide.
data showed that people aimed to meet with others who where a lot more attractive than them
undermines validity.
