Women’s preferences for sexual dimorphism in faces: Data from a sample of Arab women

Alharbi, S. A.H., Holzleitner, I. J. , Lee, A. J., Saribay, S. A. and Jones, B. C. (2020) Women’s preferences for sexual dimorphism in faces: Data from a sample of Arab women. Evolutionary Psychological Science, 6(4), pp. 328-334. (doi: 10.1007/s40806-020-00244-y)

Abstract

Many previous studies have investigated the effects of manipulating sexually dimorphic shape characteristics in face images on attractiveness judgments. However, results have been mixed and show considerable cross-cultural variability, particularly for women’s judgments of men’s facial attractiveness. Because very little research has investigated face preferences in Arab samples, we assessed Arab women’s preferences for sexually dimorphic face shapes (study 1) and the effect of sexually dimorphic face shapes on Arab women’s dominance perceptions (study 2). Analyses showed that Arab women preferred feminized versions of both women’s and men’s faces over masculinized versions (study 1, N = 272) and that masculinizing face shape had a positive effect on Arab women’s perceptions of the dominance of men, but not women (study 2, N = 270). These image manipulations did not have a significant effect on perceptions of trustworthiness, however (study 3, N = 434). Collectively, these results suggest that Arab women prefer relatively feminine face shapes in potential mates that they perceive as being low dominance. We discuss some directions for future research on the ultimate function of Arab women’s preferences for sexual dimorphism in faces.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Alharbi, Sarah and Jones, Professor Benedict and Holzleitner, Dr Iris
• Authors: Alharbi, S. A.H., Holzleitner, I. J., Lee, A. J., Saribay, S. A., and Jones, B. C.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Psychology & Neuroscience; College of Science and Engineering > School of Psychology
• Journal Name: Evolutionary Psychological Science
• Publisher: Springer
• ISSN: 2198-9885
• ISSN (Online): 2198-9885
• Published Online: 14 May 2020
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2020 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Evolutionary Psychological Science 6(4): 328-334
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence