Symmetry, averageness, and feature size in the facial attractiveness of women

Female facial attractiveness was investigated by comparing the ratings made by male judges with the metric characteristics of female faces. Three kinds of facial characteristics were considered: facial symmetry, averageness, and size of individual features. The results suggested that female face att...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta psychologica 2004-11, Vol.117 (3), p.313-332
Main Authors: Baudouin, Jean-Yves, Tiberghien, Guy
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Attractiveness
Averageness
Beauty
Biological and medical sciences
Cognitive science
Face
Facial Asymmetry
Features
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Judgment
Linguistics
Male
Neuroscience
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social Desirability
Social interactions. Communication. Group processes
Social psychology
Symmetry
Visual Perception
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Summary:Female facial attractiveness was investigated by comparing the ratings made by male judges with the metric characteristics of female faces. Three kinds of facial characteristics were considered: facial symmetry, averageness, and size of individual features. The results suggested that female face attractiveness is greater when the face is symmetrical, is close to the average, and has certain features (e.g., large eyes, prominent cheekbones, thick lips, thin eyebrows, and a small nose and chin). Nevertheless, the detrimental effect of asymmetry appears to result solely from the fact that an asymmetrical face is a face that deviates from the norm. In addition, a factor analysis indicated that averageness best accounts for female attractiveness, but certain specific features can also be enhancing.
ISSN:0001-6918
1873-6297
DOI:10.1016/j.actpsy.2004.07.002