Face preferences influence important social outcomes such as hiring decisions, partner choice and associate choice. Furthermore, people considered attractive are ascribed many other positive traits (e.g. trustworthiness) that confer social benefits. This course discusses the characteristics that determine attractiveness judgements in terms of the 2 key theoretical frameworks adopted in attractiveness research (the perceptual bias and evolutionary advantage views). Evidence for and against these views from developmental, biological, comparative, cross-cultural, social, visuo-cognitive and fMRI studies is discussed.
All reading material (excluding textbook chapters) can be downloaded as PDFs below. In addition to this reading, chapters in the course textbook address lecture topics more generally.
Copies of the course textbook [Rhodes, G. & Zebrowitz, L.A. (Eds.) (2002). Facial attractiveness: Evolutionary, cognitive, and social perspectives. Ablex] have been placed under “heavy demand” in the library.
Other books with chapters useful as introductions to the topic are:
Students who wish to read beyond the papers and chapters suggested on this page should contact BC Jones.
This lecture will outline the evidence that a person’s facial appearance influences how they are treated during social interactions and that attractiveness is an important factor in associate and partner choices. The tendency for positive personality traits to be automatically ascribed to attractive people (the attractiveness ‘halo effect’) will also be discussed.
Recommended reading: Jones (Thesis Ch. 1)
Textbook: Introduction
Lecture notes
This lecture will discuss cross-cultural comparisons of preferences for symmetric faces as evidence for high agreement among individuals in what facial characteristics are attractive. This issue will also be discussed in light of infants’ face preferences.
Recommended reading: Rhodes et al. (2001), Thornhill and Gangestad (1999), Perrett et al. (1999)
Textbook: Chapter 2
Lecture notes
The previous lecture demonstrated that attractiveness judgements, and symmetry preferences in particular, are to some degree ‘universal’. This lecture introduces the perceptual bias view of symmetry preferences. This view posits that symmetry preferences are a by-product of the ease with which the visual system processes symmetric stimuli of any kind.
Recommended reading: Jansson et al. (2002)
Textbook: Chapter 5
Lecture notes
By contrast with the perceptual bias view, this lecture introduces the evolutionary advantage view of preferences for symmetric faces. This view posits that facial symmetry signals qualities such as health that are desirable in mates. Evidence that symmetry preferences are relatively specific to mate choice relevant stimuli (i.e. faces) rather than other objects (e.g. inverted faces) will be discussed. Evidence that symmetric individuals also possess attractive voices and body odours will also be discussed as evidence that symmetry predicts attractiveness in multiple modalities (implying symmetry signals an underlying attractive quality).
Recommended reading: Little and Jones (2003), Thornhill and Gangestad (1999), Jones (Thesis Ch. 2)
Lecture notes
The evolutionary advantage view of face preferences posits that attractiveness signals qualities that are important for mate choice (e.g. health, fertility). This lecture will discuss the evidence for and against this claim.
Recommended reading: Kalick et al. (1998), Roberts et al. (2005) and Law Smith et al. (2006)
Lecture notes
This lecture will discuss the effect of averageness on facial attractiveness and how these effects relate to the evolutionary advantage and perceptual bias views of face preferences. Although average faces are attractive, evidence that highly attractive faces deviate from average will also be discussed.
Recommended reading: Rhodes et al. (1999), Perrett et al. (1994)
Textbook: Chapter 2
Lecture notes
Although average faces are typically attractive, highly attractive faces appear to deviate from an average shape. Increasing feminine characteristics in both male and female faces increases their attractiveness (but moves the face shape away from average). This lecture will discuss the effects of sexual dimorphism on facial attractiveness and how these relate to the evolutionary advantage and perceptual bias views of face preferences. The role of personality attributions in femininity preferences will also be discussed.
Recommended reading: Perrett et al. (1998)
Textbook: Chapter 3
Lecture notes
Perhaps the strongest evidence for the evolutionary advantage view of face preferences has come from the effects of changes in hormonal profile on women’s face preferences. This lecture will discuss the effects of menstrual cycle phase on women’s preferences for masculinity-femininity in male faces and the effects of menstrual cycle phase, pregnancy and oral contraceptive use on women’s aversion to faces displaying cues associated with illness.
Recommended reading: Penton-Voak et al. (1999), Jones et al. (2005)
Textbook: Chapter 3
Lecture notes
The previous lecture introduced individual differences in face preferences that occur as a consequence of change in hormonal profile. This lecture discusses the effect of own physical condition on women’s face preferences and outlines analogous findings in other species.
Recommended reading: Penton-Voak et al. (2003), Jones et al. (2005)
Textbook: Chapter 3
Lecture notes
This lecture will discuss the evidence that the extent to which we follow others' gaze direction is affected by facial cues other than gaze.
Recommended reading: Frischen et al. (2007), Jones et al. (in press).
Lecture notes
This lecture will outline: 1) recent findings for integration of diverse facial cues (expression, sex, gaze direction, physical attractiveness) when forming face preferences and 2) evidence for social transmission of face preferences among humans.
Recommended reading: Jones et al. (2006), Jones et al. (2007), and Conway et al. (2008).
Lecture notes
This lecture will summarise the key themes of the course.
Lecture notes
This will be in the form of a 90 minute exam where you will have to answer 2 from a choice of 6 questions. Fifteen sample essay questions are given below.
Disclaimer: The information found and the views expressed in these homepages are not the responsibility of the University of Aberdeen nor do they reflect institutional policy.