1. Is “beautiful” or “handsome” synonymous with “good”?
Attractiveness
Is “beautiful” or “handsome” synonymous with “good”?

2. Is beauty only skin deep?
Is attractiveness a superficial feature?
The survival of a genetic line hinges on mate selection.
Like it or not, physical appearance plays a major role in life.
82% of males and 93% of females “are actively oriented toward maintaining an attractive appearance.”

3. Biology and attractiveness
Evolutionary selection:
Faces and bodies are perceived as signs of mate quality.
facial attractiveness affects mate selection and the likelihood of reproductive success.

4. Is beauty culturally universal?
6 month old infants turn their heads toward attractive faces and away from unattractive faces (Rubenstein, Kalakanis, & Longlois (1999).
People in different cultures generally agree on which faces are more attractive (Cunningham et al ; Langlois et al. 2000; Perrett et al. 1994)

5. Looking up to leaders
Since 1900, the taller presidential candidate has won 19 of 28 elections
Obama 6’2”, McCain 5’9”
Only 3 of 43 American presidents were 5’7” or shorter
James Madison
Benjamin Harrison
Martin Van Buren

6. Size matters For Men Half of all CEOs are 6’ or more.
A 2004 study found that every inch of height adds $789 in salary per year.
The study controlled for gender, weight and age.
A male who is 6’ tall earns $5,525 more annually than someone who is 5’6”.
For Women
Taller women earned more as a result of their height, but the disparity in income was not as great as for men.
In a British study, taller women were perceived, by both sexes, as more intelligent, assertive, independent and ambitious.

7. The “Beauty is good” stereotype
Dion, Berschied, & Walster (1972) developed the “beauty is good” stereotype.
Children’s fairly tales equate beauty with goodness
Popular TV reality shows emphasize vanity
Celebutards: Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan
Tabloids and women’s magazines focus on looks

8. A double standard for attractiveness?
Are older men perceived as more attractive than older women?
As men age they may perceived as more distinguished
The older, rich, ugly guy with a beautiful young girl stereotype.
As women age they tend to be judged by the same standards of beauty
slim
curvy
wrinkle-free
no grey hair
Susan Sontag (1979) throughout the lifespan women are judged more by physical appearance than are men, so the diminishing of physical beauty is more painful for women.

9. Facial symmetry Facial symmetry signifies biological quality
People prefer others with symmetrical and proportional faces
Bilateral symmetry: left and right sides of the face are mirror images
Proportionality: equally sized features
The more symmetrical an organism is (low FA), the
better is the rest of its phenotype. Symmetry is
shown to have strong positive associations with
immune strength and resistance to parasites (Møller
2006), ability to escape predators, speed, strength,
mental acuity and ability to cope with a wide range
of stressors (Polak 2003; Møller 2006; Thoma et al.
2006).

10. Asymmetrical faces

11. Averageness faces with average features are preferred
faces that are closer to average are consistently rated as more attractive

12. Sexual dimorphism
Dimorphism: how biologically distinct females and males of the same species are from one another
For human faces dimorphism refers to how masculine or feminine a face is.
Greater dimorphism (feminization) is preferred for female faces
For male faces, results are mixed
More recent studies show a slight preference for feminized male faces
Women’s preferences shift toward masculine faces during ovulation
“Men, gay or straight, prefer high sexual dimorphism in the faces of the sex that they are attracted to.”