Women Prefer Men With Yellow, Red Faces - National ...

Women in a recent experiment preferred men with yellower and redder skin tones, both of which can signal good health, a crucial factor in ... SkiptocontentRenewSubscribeMenuAmanwithayellowskintone(above,right,inacompositephoto)ismoreattractivetowomenthanamanwithoutayellowskintone(left,inacompositephoto),anewstudysays.PhotographycourtesyIanPenton-VoakPleaseberespectfulofcopyright.Unauthorizeduseisprohibited.Men,takenote:Ahealthyglowismoreattractivetowomenthanastrong,masculineface,anewstudysays.Womeninarecentexperimentpreferredmenwithyellowerandredderskintones,bothofwhichcansignalgoodhealth,acrucialfactorinchoosingamate,scientistssay.Forinstance,peopleofanyracewhoeatadietrichinfruitsandvegetablestendtohaveyellowerhues,andpeoplewhoarephysicallyfithavemoreoxygenated—andthus,redder—bloodandskin.Bycontrast,pallidskinwithlesionsisgenerallyconsideredunattractive,perhapsbecausesuchtraitsbetrayaweakimmunesystem,saidstudyco-authorIanPenton-Voak,anexperimentalpsychologistattheUniversityofBristolintheU.K.(Exploreahuman-bodyinteractive.)Unexpectedly,thewomeninthestudyshowednopreferenceformenwithtraditionallymasculinefeatures,suchasaprominentjawandhighmusclemass,theresearcherssay."Whatwefoundis—tooursurprise—whenyoumeasuremasculinity,itdoesn'tbearanyrelationtoattractivenessatall,"Penton-Voaksaid.Thediscoveryfliesinthefaceofpreviousresearchthatsuggestedwomenaredrawntomenwithmasculinetraits,whichhavebeenassociatedwithlonger-termqualitiesincludingdisease resistanceandhealthieroffspring.(Related:"Valentine'sScience:WhyGaugingSexinessIsSophisticated.")Insteadoflookingforamanlyman,Penton-Voaknoted,awomanmaybefocusingmoreonanimmediatequestion:Isthispotentialmatehealthyorsick?ManlyMenTakeaHitPenton-Voakandcolleaguestook20photosofCaucasianmeninnorthernEnglandwithanaverageageof27andmademathematicalmeasuresoftheirfacialcolorsandmasculinity.Twenty-oneCaucasianwomenwithanaverageageof19werethenaskedtojudgetheattractivenessofeachman'spicture.Thewomenratedthemenwithyellowandredskintonesasmostdesirable.(See"Watching'Sexy'MalesLeadstoBetterChicks,StudySays.")Inthesecondpartofthestudy,theteamtooktheoriginalphotos,digitallymorphedthemintomoremasculineorfemininefaces,andaskedthesubjectstoselectwhichversiontheyfoundmoreattractive.Againthewomenwerenotmoreinterestedinthemenwithmasculinizedfaces.Thoughthesubjectsinthestudy—publishedOctober27inthejournalPLoSONE—wereCaucasian,it'slikelythatsuchpreferencesare"cross-culturallystable,"Penton-Voaknoted.Otherexperimentshaveshown,forexample,thatZuluwomeninSouthAfricalikeSouthAfricanmenwithyellowandredskintones.MoreThanJustaPrettyFaceStill,thenewstudydoesn'truleoutthechancethatculturaldifferencesinfluencewhichphysicaltraitswomenfindattractive,saidLauraDane,anevolutionarypsychologistatDouglasCollegeinBritishColumbia,Canada.Andoverall,Daneemphasized,thepaperismissingakeypoint:"Physicalattractivenessisnottheonlythingthatwomenusetochoose"apartner.Forinstance,inselectingamate,womenwilloftentradelooksforresourcesorpersonality.Danedescribeda1990studyintheJournalofPsychologyinwhichwomenwereaskedtochoosebetweenwhatmanywouldconsideranattractivemaninaBurgerKinguniformandanunattractivemaninasuit.Mostwomenchosethemaninasuit,presumablybecausehewouldbeabetterprovider.However,inaseparatepartofthestudy,mostwomenalsosaidtheywouldpreferanattractivemaninasuit,shepointedout.Whenthestudyauthorsperformedasimilarexperimentwithmen,thesubjectsmostoftenchosethemoreattractivewoman, regardlessoftheoutfit,Daneadded.Suchpredictabilityiswhystudying"men'spreferences[inwomenis]veryboring,"studyco-authorPenton-Voaksaid.Menconsistentlywantwomenwhoshowsignsofyouthandfemininity,whichinturnindicatehighfertility.(Related:"BikinisMakeMenSeeWomenasObjects,ScansConfirm.")Sowhatpurposedomasculinefeaturesserve?Theycouldbeasignalofmorethanjusthealthandvirility,suchassocialcloutorpower,DouglasCollege'sDanesaid.SuchatheoryfitsintoPenton-Voakandcolleagues'nexttopicofstudy:whethermasculinetraitsexistmostlyforthebenefitofothermen."Maybemasculinityisnotthereforwomentofindattractive,"Penton-Voaksaid,but"tostakeaclaiminadominancehierarchy."ShareTweetEmailReadThisNextCanIndiacleanupitsholiestriver?MagazineCanIndiacleanupitsholiestriver?RiddingtheGangesofthousandsoftonsofplastictrashisacomplexpuzzle.Indiaisstartingtoputthepiecestogether.KillingcockroacheswithpesticidesisonlymakingthespeciesstrongerAnimalsKillingcockroacheswithpesticidesisonlymakingthespeciesstrongerAmericansneedalesstoxicapproachtomanagingthemostcommoncockroaches,whichareevolvingresistancetostore-boughtinsecticides.Howagame-changingtransplantcouldtreatdyingorgansScienceHowagame-changingtransplantcouldtreatdyingorgansEarlysuccesswithaprocedurecalledamitochondrialtransplantoffersaglimmerofhopeforpeoplefightingforsurvivalaftercardiacarrest,stroke,andmore.Historicdroughtloomsfor20millionlivinginHornofAfricaEnvironmentHistoricdroughtloomsfor20millionlivinginHornofAfricaTheclimaticphenomenonknownasLaNiñaispreventingnourishingrainsforthefourthseasoninarow,puttingEastAfricaonthe“brinkofcatastrophe.”GoFurtherAnimalsKillingcockroacheswithpesticidesisonlymakingthespeciesstrongerAnimalsKillingcockroacheswithpesticidesisonlymakingthespeciesstron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