Female physical characteristics and intra-sexual competition in women

• Published in: Personality and individual differences 2014-02, Vol.58, p.138-141
• Main Authors: Fink, Bernhard, Klappauf, Dominique, Brewer, Gayle, Shackelford, Todd K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Attractiveness; Biological and medical sciences; Females; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Intra-sexual competition; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Social attribution, perception and cognition; Social psychology
• ISSN: 0191-8869; 1873-3549
• DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2013.10.015

•Women engage in intra-sexual competition to attract or to retain a mate.•They may be attuned to potential rivals who display certain physical traits.•Images of faces, breasts and waist-to-hip ratio were assessed on perceived threat.•Attractive and feminine physical characteristics were perceived as highest competition. Women engage in intra-sexual competition to attract or to retain a mate. Given men’s preferences for certain female physical characteristics, women may be attuned to potential rivals who display such traits. We examined how variation in facial femininity, breast size, and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) affects perceived competition and attractiveness judgments in a sample of German female undergraduates. Thirty-five women ranked five images of each stimulus type according to perceived competition and rated these images for attractiveness and femininity. Women with more feminine faces, larger breasts, and lower WHRs received higher attractiveness and femininity ratings and were ranked highest on perceived competition. The results indicate the occurrence of human female intra-sexual competition with respect to physical traits desired by potential mates.