Physical Attractiveness and Social Status

In this article, we outline the evidence regarding the status effects of physical attractiveness, paying particular attention to outcomes in the areas of jobs, crime, performance evaluations, power, health perceptions, and exchange. The framework of status characteristics theory is used to guide our explication. The role of attractiveness in marketing is also discussed. While the literature generally supports the idea that attractiveness is good for people, we also consider evidence that beauty can be detrimental for some individuals in certain situations. Issues of race and gender are also considered as well as future research directions.     

When Physical and Vocal Attractiveness Differ: Effects on Favorability of Interpersonal Impressions

Previous research has shown that targets whose physical and vocal attractiveness do not match (one channel being high and the other being low in attractiveness) elicit more negative impressions. The present study replicated this result and showed that the mediator and, hence, the reason for this effect is not simply a perception that the face and voice are discrepant but rather some disappointment with the less attractive channel. The finding that perceivers are overly disappointed with the less attractive channel is consistent with a large literature indicating that effects of negative events such as unattractive face or voice are stronger than effects of positive events.     

Self-Perceived Physical Attractiveness,Self-Esteem,Race, and Gender

Abstract

African American self-perceptions of physical attractiveness are found to be higher than white self-perceptions, while there is no difference by race in the correlation between self-perceived attractiveness and self-esteem. Controlling for self-perceived attractiveness, African Americans have lower self-esteem than whites, suggesting that African American perceptions of physical attractiveness, mirrored in the slogan “Black is Beautiful,” may have contributed to the disappearance over the past forty years of the gap between African American and white self-esteem. Self-esteem is more strongly related to self-perceived physical attractiveness for females than males, particularly among whites.     

The Impact of Physical Attractiveness on Women's Social Status and Interactional Power

This article tests hypotheses derived from status-generalization theory and communication-accommodation theory that behaviors resulting from status inequalities emerge when attractiveness differentiates dyads. Relying on unobtrusive acoustic analysis of 24 women's voices, we test the extent to which (1) women adjust nonverbal behavior to one another; (2) more attractive women exert more influence than less attractive partners; and (3) the effects of attractiveness on influence are stronger if a greater relative difference exists between partners. Findings suggest that if two interacting women are similarly attractive, then they compete dynamically for status, which informs recent developments in the expectation-states research program. An earlier version of the paper was presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Washington, DC in August 2000.     

Vocal and Physiological Changes in Response to the Physical Attractiveness of Conversational Partners

We examined how individuals may change their voices when speaking to attractive versus unattractive individuals, and if it were possible for others to perceive these vocal changes. In addition, we examined if any concurrent physiological effects occurred when speaking with individuals who varied in physical attractiveness. We found that both sexes used a lower-pitched voice and showed a higher level of physiological arousal when speaking to the more attractive, opposite-sex target. Furthermore, independent raters evaluated the voice samples directed toward the attractive target (versus the unattractive target) as sounding more pleasant when the two voice samples from the same person presented had a reasonably perceptually noticeable difference in pitch. These findings may have implications for the role voice plays in mate selection and attraction.     

Self-Perceptions of Sexual Attractiveness: Satisfaction With Physical Appearance is Not of Primary Importance Across Gender and Sexual Orientation

Research on self-perceived sexual attractiveness has predominantly focused on the importance of physical appearance, overlooking nonphysical traits that may contribute to these self-perceptions. The present study examined and compared the importance of a variety of traits for self-perceived sexual attractiveness. Self-identified heterosexual, gay, and bisexual men (N = 1,801) and heterosexual, lesbian, and bisexual women (N = 1,092) completed an online questionnaire examining self-perceived sexual attractiveness, body esteem, sexual esteem, adherence to gender norms, and sexual experience. Body esteem and sexual esteem were significant predictors of self-perceived sexual attractiveness, regardless of gender and sexual orientation. Adhering to a masculine gender norm was a significant predictor among all groups (to varying extents) but heterosexual women. Adhering to a feminine gender norm was a significant predictor among heterosexual men and bisexual women. Finally, sexual experience was a significant predictor for all men and bisexual women. Furthermore, while body esteem was a predictor across all groups, for most individuals it did not appear to be of primary importance, with either sexual esteem or masculinity proving to be of greater importance. These findings suggest the need to consider traits related to both physical and nonphysical factors for improving an individual's self-perceived sexual attractiveness.     

The Role of Social Performance and Physical Attractiveness in Peer Rejection of Socially Anxious Adolescents

This study addressed the role of social performance and physical attractiveness in the link between social anxiety and peer rejection in first‐time social situations. Recordings of 20 high and 20 low socially anxious adolescents giving a speech were rated by unfamiliar peers (N = 534) with regard to desire for future interaction (lower scores indicating rejection), social performance, and physical attractiveness; trained adult raters also evaluated social performance. Findings showed high interrelations between the different peer ratings and moderate correlations between adult and peer ratings. High socially anxious students were more rejected and social performance and physical attractiveness partly mediated the link between social anxiety and rejection. The findings may have important implications for socially anxious youth entering new social situations.     

In the Eye of the Beholder: A Comprehensive Analysis of Stimulus Type,Perceiver, and Target in Physical Attractiveness Perceptions

Journal of Nonverbal Behavior - Physical attractiveness plays a central role in psychosocial experiences. One of the top research priorities has been to identify factors affecting perceptions of...     

The Relation Between Popularity and Aggressive,Destructive, and Norm‐Breaking Behaviors: Moderating Effects of Athletic Abilities,Physical Attractiveness,and Prosociality

The aim of this study was to examine the relations between popularity and different types of aggressive, destructive, and norm‐breaking behaviors in a large cross‐sectional sample of adolescents (N=3,312, M age=13.60). We were interested in the extent to which the relations of these behaviors with popularity were moderated by positive features (i.e., athletic abilities, physical attractiveness, and prosociality). From a goal‐framing perspective, it was argued that positive features evoke positive affect, which in turn enhances the positive impact of aggressive, destructive, and norm‐breaking behaviors on popularity. The results supported our notion that these latter behaviors are especially related to popularity in adolescents who also exhibit positive features.     

Symmetry in Motion: Perception of Attractiveness Changes with Facial Movement

Facial symmetry is an index of developmental stability and shows a positive correlation with attractiveness assessment. However, the appearance of one’s facial symmetry is not always static and may change when there is facial movement while a person is speaking. This study examined whether viewing a dynamic image of a person speaking (where facial symmetry may alter) would elicit a different perception of attractiveness than viewing a static image of that person as a still photo. We examined changes in both measured and perceived facial symmetry in relation to attractiveness perception. We found that when facial movements created an appearance of overall greater facial symmetry while a person was speaking in a video, the person was rated as being more attractive than as a still photo. Likewise, those with facial movements measured and perceived as less symmetrical while speaking were rated as less attractive in a video clip than still photo. By examining the perception of faces in motion as we typically encounter others in real life rather than considering only static photos, we have extended the ecological validity of the study of the perception of bilateral symmetry in humans as it relates to attractiveness.     

Cues of Men's Parental Investment and Attractiveness for Women: A Field Experiment

An experiment was carried out in which a male confederate, seated at a pavement area of a bar, happened to meet his “sister” (a female confederate) and her baby. In one case, the confederate interacted with the baby, whereas in the other case he paid no attention to him. A few minutes later, while the confederate was alone, he solicited a young woman who was seated near his table and asked her for her phone number. Results showed that when the confederate interacted with the baby, he received more positive responses from women than when he paid no attention to the baby.     

The Impact of Patronymic Attractiveness on Employability

We link patronymics (first and last names presented together) to success in the job market by investigating the influence of name attractiveness on employability. Using data from a recruitment agency, we tested (binomial regression) for effects associated with age, gender, and name attractiveness on job interview outcomes. We found that candidates with more attractive patronymics were more likely to be retained by employers.     

Beauty Goes Down to the Core: Attractiveness Biases Moral Character Attributions

Journal of Nonverbal Behavior - Physical attractiveness is a heuristic that is often used as an indicator of desirable traits. In two studies (N?=?1254), we tested whether facial...     

The Attractiveness Halo: Why Some Candidates are Perceived More Favorably than Others

Olivola and Todorov (Elected in 100 milliseconds: appearance-based trait inferences and voting. J Nonverbal Behav, 2010) provide a convincing demonstration that competence ratings based on 1-second exposures to paired photos of US congressional candidates predict election outcomes at better than chance levels. However, they do not account for variation in competence judgments. In their analysis, Olivola and Todorov show that attractiveness, familiarity, babyfacedness and age are proximal predictors of vote choice, but find that after controlling for competence these factors no longer reliably influence the margin of electoral victory. Drawing on well-documented halo effects of attractiveness on character-based inferences and the extensive literature on mere exposure effects, we re-organize Olivola and Todorov’s analysis into a simple path model to explore the causal ordering of these factors. We find that spontaneous assessments of attractiveness and familiarity occur prior to attributions of competence, and thus exert a downstream effect on judgments of competence.     

如何提高轻轨系统的吸引力

介绍轻轨系统的固有优点、提高轻轨系统吸引力的因素、所有乘客对轻轨系统可能有的共同期望、不同类型的乘客对轻轨系统可能有的期望、以及世界各地提高轻轨系统吸引力的若干实例。     

上海全球城市吸引力指标体系构建与比较分析

上海应积极借鉴全球城市提升吸引力的先进经验和做法,立足实际,以"三引、三提、三增"为抓手,以满足人才"优质美好生活需要、健康安全保障需要、良好文化氛围需要、深层包容发展需要"为核心,增强对全球创新人才的磁力与黏性,吸引创新人才、留住创新人才,形成"人与城市和谐共进"的合力,助力上海早日建成卓越全球城市.     

上海全球城市吸引力指标体系构建与比较分析

上海应积极借鉴全球城市提升吸引力的先进经验和做法,立足实际,以"三引、三提、三增"为抓手,以满足人才"优质美好生活需要、健康安全保障需要、良好文化氛围需要、深层包容发展需要"为核心,增强对全球创新人才的磁力与黏性,吸引创新人才、留住创新人才,形成"人与城市和谐共进"的合力,助力上海早日建成卓越全球城市.     

上海全球城市吸引力指标体系构建与比较分析

上海应积极借鉴全球城市提升吸引力的先进经验和做法,立足实际,以"三引、三提、三增"为抓手,以满足人才"优质美好生活需要、健康安全保障需要、良好文化氛围需要、深层包容发展需要"为核心,增强对全球创新人才的磁力与黏性,吸引创新人才、留住创新人才,形成"人与城市和谐共进"的合力,助力上海早日建成卓越全球城市.     

上海全球城市吸引力指标体系构建与比较分析

上海应积极借鉴全球城市提升吸引力的先进经验和做法,立足实际,以三引、三提、三增为抓手,以满足人才优质美好生活需要、健康安全保障需要、良好文化氛围需要、深层包容发展需要为核心,增强对全球创新人才的磁力与黏性,吸引创新人才、留住创新人才,形成人与城市和谐共进的合力,助力上海早日建成卓越全球城市.     

上海全球城市吸引力指标体系构建与比较分析

上海应积极借鉴全球城市提升吸引力的先进经验和做法,立足实际,以"三引、三提、三增"为抓手,以满足人才"优质美好生活需要、健康安全保障需要、良好文化氛围需要、深层包容发展需要"为核心,增强对全球创新人才的磁力与黏性,吸引创新人才、留住创新人才,形成"人与城市和谐共进"的合力,助力上海早日建成卓越全球城市.