The Most Attractive Facial Traits According To Science ...

Having a youthful-looking face — a babyface, as it were — is desirable. One study found that men rated baby-like features including "large eyes, ... TheMostAttractiveFacialTraitsAccordingToScience Shutterstock By BrittanyBrolley/Updated:Sept.24,202011:18pmEDT "Youhavesuchaprettyface"mightjustbethemostcommon backhandedcompliment womenreceive. Butwhateven is aprettyface?Asidefrombeingacringe-worthysnub,researchersandscientiststhinkthey'vefoundtheanswertowhatmakesafaceattractive.Yes,facialattractivenessis,apparently,quantifiable.Whileit'struethatlookinglikeNataliePortmanorAmberHeardisscientificallydesirable—notthatanyoneactuallyneededsciencetoconfirmthat,ofcourse—youmightjustbesurprisedtolearnjustwhichparticularfacialtraitshaveaninfluenceovermassappeal.And,contrarytowhatyoumightbethinking,It'snotallabouthavinghighcheekbonesorpearlywhites. Actually,asitturnsout,someofwhatconvincesusthatanotherperson'sfaceisattractiveisprettysurprisingand,well,kindofcreepy.Withoutfurtherado,herearethemostattractivefacialtraitsapersoncanpossess—ahem,scientificallyspeaking. Familiarity Shutterstock Ifanyonehasevercomeuptoyouandusedthepickupline,"Hey,youlookfamiliar.DoIknowyoufromsomewhere?,"itisactuallypossiblethatyoudolookfamiliar.And,truthbetold,thatmightbewhythepersonishittingonyou.Anarticleforthe AssociationforPsychologicalSciencerevealedthat"familiarfacesareeasytoprocessandcategorize."Itisthoughtthatearlyinhumanhistory,people"cametolinkfamiliarityandease-of-processingwithsafetyandtrustandgoodfeelings."However,that'schangedovertimeandattractivenesshasbecome"themodernequivalentofwhatourancientancestorssawastrustworthyandsafe." Thiswasprovedtobethecasethrougha2012studyconductedby psychologicalscientistJaminHalberstadtinwhichparticipantsratedlocalcelebritiesasmoreattractivethanmorphedoraveragedphotosofdifferentcelebrityfacialfeatures.Familiaritymaysoundabitboringonpaper,butourbrainshaveconvincedusthatfamiliarfacesareactuallyattractive. Allabouttheaverage Shutterstock Ifsomeoneweretotellyouthatyou'reaverage-looking,youprobablywouldn'tbejumpingupanddownwithjoy.However,the2012studyconductedby psychologicalscientistJaminHalberstadtnotonlyfoundthatpeoplepreferfamiliarfaces,buttheyalsopreferaveragefaces. Inthissense,anaveragefaceisablendofdifferentfacialfeatures—afacethathasbeen"averaged"together.Usingpicturesofnationalcelebrities,Halberstadtdigitallyblendedthemtogetherwithfacesofthesamegenderandnationality.Bytheendofthestudy,theparticipantshadconsistentlyratedthemorphedimagesasmoreattractivewiththeexceptionoflocalcelebrityfaces. "Itappearsthatamorphedfaceisagoodandeasy-to-processexampleofauniversalhuman'face'—butitisapooranddifficult-to-processexampleoftheoriginal,locallyknownfaces,"thearticle"TheTwoFacesofAttractiveness"reads."Theeaseofprocessingtheprototypicalfacesboostspositiveemotions,andtheseemotionsgeneralizetomakeaveragefacesgenerallyappealing."AdditionalstudieshavealsoconfirmedwhatHalberstadtfoundtobetrue:anaveragefaceisanattractiveface. Andfamilial? Shutterstock Averagenessmayhaveanedgeuponfamiliaritywhenitcomestoattractiveness,butyoucan'tdiscountthathumanslikewhattheyalreadyknow—especiallywhenitcomestofaces.Andwhosefacesdoyouknowbetterthanyourownfamily's?Yes,thisiswhereitgetsalittleweird,folks. In2010,astudyconsistingofthreeseparateexperimentsconfirmedthatpeopleareattractedtootherswhoeitherresemblethemselvesortheirparents,or,asthestudyputit,"peoplefindindividualswhoresembletheirkinmoresexuallyappealing."JaimeandCerseiLannisterapparentlygotthismemo.However,it'simportanttonotethatthisisonasubconscious,subliminallevel. Theparticipantswereverymuchnotattractedtotheirfamilymembers'facesoncetheybecameawareoftheirgeneticconnection.So,maybemorelikeJonSnowandDaenrys Targaryen?GameofThrones charactersaside,anearlierstudyalsofoundthatpeopleareattractedtootherswhoresembletheiropposite-sexparent."Itisanincrediblycomplexphenomenon,aseverybodyknows,"ProfessorTamasBereczkeiofHungary'sInstituteofPsychologyattheUniversityofPécstoldTheTelegraph.Complexandcringey. Babyface Shutterstock Havingayouthful-lookingface—ababyface,asitwere—isdesirable.Onestudyfoundthatmenratedbaby-likefeaturesincluding"largeeyes,smallnose,andsmallchin"asmostattractive. CarolineKeating,anexpertinnon-verbalcommunicationatColgateUniversityinNewYork,toldBBCFuture,"Thebigeyes,thelonglashes,thearchedbrows,theplumplips,thesmallchins,theroundface,thecutelittlenose—ifIwasn'tdescribingababy,I'dbedescribingasupermodel."  Althoughhowapersonactsandhowapersonlooksaretwoverydifferentthings,peopletendtoconsiderthosewithbabyfacestohavechildlikecharacteristics,includinginnocence,accordingtoKeating."Forgetexpression—it'sthestructureofthefaceitselfthatconveysthesesignals,"sheexplained."Wegetourfirstimpressionsfromthefaceanditsticks." A2009studyfurtherconfirmedthat"baby-facedindividualsevokefeelingsofwarmth,trustandcooperation."Basically,it'sbabyfaceforthewin. Keepitsimple,stupid Shutterstock Simplefacesarenotonlyeasierforourbrainstocompute,buttheyarealsowhatmenfindmostattractive,accordingtoone2016study."Thinkaboutanemoticon,"BillvonHippel,aUniversityofQueenslandpsychologyprofessor,explainedtoNews.com.au."Youhavetwodotsandacurvedlinethatimmediatelyeveryoneprocessesasasmile.It'ssparse,it'splain.It'sfamiliar,andit'seasytounderstand."That'snottosayweliterallypreferfacesthatlooklikeemojis,ofcourse,butourbrainslikefacesthatarerelativelysimple. Theprofessorwentontoexplain,saying,"Thepartofthebrainprocessingthesethingsmeansitisverymuchaninvoluntary,automatic,probablylargelyunconsciousreaction."Firstimpressions,hesurmised,arethusveryimportant.Asthearticlenoted,thiscouldbepartofwhysimpleonlinedatingappslikeTinderwithswipeleft/righttechnologyhavetakenoff. Symmetry Shutterstock Scientistshavelongknownthatsymmetryplaysanimportantroleinfacialattractiveness,butresearchersweren'tsurewhy.Inthepast,itwasthoughtthatsymmetryservedasanindicationofhealthwhereasasymmetrywasthoughttobeindicativeofnumeroushealthproblems,suchastonsillitis,mumps,andchickenpox.However,astudyledbyresearcherNicholasPoundprovedthatasymmetry—atleastinadolescents—isnotatallrelatedtohealth.So,ifithasnothingtodowithhealth,whydowedigsymmetricalfaces? Anothertheory,the"perceptualbias,"suggeststhatsymmetricalfacesareeasiertoprocess.Yes,symmetricalfacesaresimpleandeasyonourbrains.However,researchershavecalledthistheoryintoquestion.Accordingtoa2003study,"symmetryispreferredeveninfamiliarfaces."Ifitwasallabouteaseofprocessing,thislikelywouldn'tbethecase.Thescienceisn'tcrystalclearonwhyhumanslikesymmetry,butresearchersdoagreethatsymmetryisattractive. Asymmetry Shutterstock Thoughafacecannotbebothsymmetricalandasymmetrical,it'sentirelypossibleforpeopletofindbothsortsoffacesattractive.It'salsopossibletopreferanasymmetricalfaceoveronethatisperfectlyproportionate."Ifyouhaveaverysymmetric,veryeasytoprocessface,thenyouhaveoneproblem:Youwon'tberememberedsowell,"Claus-ChristianCarbon,aprofessorofpsychologyattheUniversityofBamberginGermany,toldNautilus.TheexpertpointedtoMerylStreep'sslightasymmetriestoexplainthistheory."Thelittleimperfectionsofherfacecanbe[read]asasignofauthenticity,"headded.Herfeaturesalsomakehermoredistinct,morerecallable.  MargaretLivingstone,aneurobiologyprofessoratHarvardMedicalSchool,alsoexplainedtothepublicationthatthehumanbrainprocessesfacesholistically,orasagrouping,notnecessarilypertrait.Additionally,ourbrainsgoaboutthisworkstartingfromtheleftandendingattheright.Thismeanspeopledon'talwaysspotasymmetries. DavidPerrett,professoratSt.AndrewsUniversity'sSchoolofPsychologyandNeuroscience,explained,"Ithinkbecausewearebusyprocessingonesideatonetime,wedon'tnoticetheleft-rightdifferences."  Facialweight Shutterstock Onestudydemonstratedthat"facialadiposity,ortheperceptionofweightintheface,significantlypredictsperceivedhealthandattractiveness."Fromtheresearchobtained,itwasrevealedthat"participantscouldreliablyestimateBMIfromfacialcluesalone."Cueeyeroll.Researchershavealsofoundthatadiposityalsoinfluencestheperceptionofattractiveness—gofigure.However,itseemswhetherpeoplepreferthinorfullfacesisdecidedbywhohastheinternetandwhodoesn't.Forreal."Wefoundthatpeoplewithoutinternetaccesspreferred...womenwithhigheradipositythanpeoplewithinternetaccess,"thestudy,whichwasconductedinElSalvador,found. InanadditionalstudyconductedintheUK,womenwerefoundtoprefer"alowerleveloffacialadiposityforattractivenessthanforhealth"whereasmendidnotdifferentiate"betweenthe'mostattractive'and'mosthealthy'lookingleveloffacialadiposity." Itmaynotexactlybeasurprisethatthinisthemoretheacceptedideal—evenwhenitcomestofaces. Asmilingface Shutterstock Smilingisagreathackonecanusetoappearmoreattractive,it'strue,butthat'snottosaypeople—especiallywomen—shouldbeforcedtosmile."Mentellwomentosmilebecausesocietyconditionsmentothinkweexistforthemalegazeandfortheirpleasure,"activistBenéVieraexplainedtoHuffPost."Essentiallywhatamanissayingwhenhetellsawoman—onehedoesn'tevenknow—tosmile,isthathiswantsoutweighherownautonomyoverhowsheexistsintheworld."Whenyousmileisuptoyouandwe'dventuretoguessthatit'snevergoingtobewhilewalkingdownthestreetandatsomerando'srequest.  Thatsaid,ifyouwanttosmile,sciencehasbackedupthenotionthatflashingagrindoesindeedhaveapositiveinfluenceonone'sattractiveness.Inonestudy,itwasdiscoveredthatphotosofsmilerswerenotonlyratedasmoreattractivethanthosewithaneutralexpression,buttheywerealsoperceivedtobekinder. The"JohnnyDeppeffect" GettyImages Fromabiologicalstandpoint,maleandfemalefacesdifferslightly.AccordingtoareportbytheSchoolofPsychologyattheUniversityofAberdeenandtheDepartmentofPsychologyattheUniversityofStirlinginScotland,hormonesdictatemanyofthesedifferences,like"moreprominentcheekbones"and"largerjawbones"inmen.It'sbeenfoundthatthese"sexualcharacteristics"—thatis,predominantlymasculinefeaturesandfemininefeatures—areattractive.Though,whythisisthecaseisnotfullyknown.Theresearcherssaidthesetraitsmaybeconsideredattractivebecausetheycouldsignify"goodgenes"orperhapshealth. In2016,researchersalsodiscoveredwhattheycalledthe"JohnnyDeppeffect"—whichiswhenmalefaceswithfemininefeaturesarethoughtofasmoreattractive.AsexplainedbyJaminHalberstadt,aprofessorat Otago'sDepartmentofPsychology,peopleactuallygenerallyprefermorefemininefaces—"unlessthecontextforcestheviewertoputthefaceintorigidgenderboxes." Ambiguousfacesaren'tjustapreferenceintheWest.Aspartofthe studyonfacialadiposityconductedinElSalvador,peoplewithoutinternetaccesswerealsofoundtoprefermenwithmorefemininefacialcharacteristicsandwomenwithmoremasculinetraits. Healthy-lookingskin Shutterstock Scientistshaveperformedcountlessstudiesusingblendedimages.However,researchersfromtheSchoolofPsychologyattheUniversityofAberdeenandtheDepartmentofPsychologyattheUniversityofStirlinginScotlandpointedouttheproblemwiththistechnology."Themoreimagesthatareblendedtogetherthesmoothertheskintexturebecomes,asimperfectionssuchaslinesorblemishesareaveraged,"theyexplainedintheirreport. Still,onestudy didtakeonthechallenge.Theresultsindicatedthatthe"apparenthealthoffacialskiniscorrelatedbothwithratingsofmalefacialattractiveness...andwithbeingavisualcueforjudgmentsoftheattractivenessofmalefaces."AnotherstudywhichevaluatedCaucasianmenwithdigitallyalteredskintonesalsofoundthatwomenhighlyfavoredfaceswithaso-calledhealthyglow,thatisskinwithmoreyellowandredtones. Thereasonforthismayberootedinhealth,thestudy'sco-authorIanPenton-VoakexplainedtoNationalGeographic.Yellowishhuescanindicatehealthyeatinghabitswhereasamorereddishcolorcanindicatefitness.Healthyskinwasalsofoundtobemuchmoreimportanttowomenthanmasculinefeatures,whichactuallydidn'tseemtoplayanysignificantrole. Scars GettyImages Facialscarsassohotrightnow.ScientistsattheUniversityofLiverpoolrevealedthatmenwithfacialscarsareconsideredtobemoreattractivetowomenwhoarelookingforafling.It'strue.Thisisinterestingbecausefacialscarringdoesn'texactlyfitthebillforwhatisgenerallyconsideredattractive,likesymmetry,skinhealth,orsimplicity. Aspartofthestudy,menandwomenwereaskedtoviewimagesoffacesthatwerescarredfromeitherinjuryorillnessandthenaskedtotheratetheperson'sattractivenessforbothshort-termandlong-termrelationships.RobBurrissofUniversityofLiverpool'sSchoolofBiologicalSciencesexplainedthestudyinapublicrelease(viaEurekAlert!):"Womenmayhaveratedscarringasanattractivequalityforshort-termrelationshipsbecausetheyfoundittobeasymbolofmasculinity,afeaturethatislinkedtohightestosteronelevelsandanindicatorofgoodgeneticqualitiesthatcanbepassedontooffspring."Menwithoutanyfacialscarring,ontheotherhand,wereratedas"morecaring"andthoughttobebettersuitedforlong-termrelationships.Itmightjustbe,Burrissspeculated,thatwomenfindfacialscarringattractivebecauseithistoricallysignifiesbravery. Facialhair Shutterstock Justaswomenratedmenwithfacialscarstobevariablyattractivedependingonpotentialrelationshipstatus,menandwomeninanotherstudyfoundbeardsmoreattractivethanshavedfaceswhenlookingforalong-termrelationship.Why?Researcherscanonlyspeculate.Itcouldbethat,asthestudy'sauthorsexplained,"beardsconsistentlyrendermenwithanolder,moremasculine,sociallydominantandaggressiveappearance."Orbeardscouldjustbeconsideredmoreattractivetowomenwhenlookingforsomethinglong-termbecause"theyindicateamale'sabilitytosuccessfullycompetesociallywithothermalesforresources." Asgreatasbeardswerefoundtobeforlong-termrelationships,thefemaleparticipantsfound"heavystubble,"or"10daysofbeardgrowth,"tobethemostattractiveformoffacialhairoverall.Itmaysurpriseyouthatclean-shavenfacescameinlastplaceacrosstheboard.Irrespectiveofpotentialrelationshipstatus,anoverwhelmingportionoftheover9,000participants(morethan8,000femaleand1,000male)didnotprefershavedfaces. Facialmaturity GettyImages The"GeorgeClooneyeffect"—nottobeconfusedwiththe"JohnnyDeppeffect"—iswhatpsychologistshavedubbedtherelationshipbetweenoldermenandyoungerwomen.AccordingtoBusinessInsider,astudyinScotlandfoundthemorefinanciallyindependentawomanis,themorelikelysheistodateahandsome,olderman.Thisisn'twhatresearchersthoughtwouldhappen."We'dassumedthataswomenearnmore,theirpartnerpreferenceswouldactuallybecomemorelikethoseofmen,withatendencytowardspreferringyounger,moreattractivepartnersratherthanthosewhocanprovideandcareforchildren,"thestudy'sleadresearcher,FhionnaMoore,revealedinastatement.Shecontinued,adding,"Wethinkthissuggestsgreaterfinancialindependencegiveswomenmoreconfidenceinpartnerchoices,andattractsthemtopowerful,attractiveoldermen." Whateverthereason,manyfindagedness—includingagedfaces—attractive.Asithappens,theauthorsofastudyonfacialhairconfirmedthatthematurityfactorispartofwhatmakesstubblesoalluring. Recommended