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Attractiveness ratings of three-dimensional female physiques in color

In a new study where 3-D physiques of European women in color were rated for attractiveness by Europeans, the attractiveness ratings were related to percentage body fat, breast size relative to waist size, and skin tone, but not cardiovascular fitness, and male and female raters judged attractiveness similarly(1; pdf).

The authors videotaped 43 female college student volunteers in a standardized posture and [minimal] dress while they stood on a slowly rotating platform, and also measured the following:

  • %BF – Percentage body fat.
  • WHR – circumferential waist-to-hip ratio.
  • WCR – circumferential waist-to-chest ratio.
  • TLR – Torso-length to leg-length ratio.
  • R-predicted VO2max – An assessment of cardiovascular fitness; the maximal amount of oxygen that the cardiovascular system can supply to tissues; expressed in terms of amount of oxygen per unit time per unit body weight.
  • HR recovery time – Change in heart rate from the peak during exercise to two minutes after stopping exercise.

Videos of the volunteers [with face blurred] were then rated for attractiveness by the judges.  The following table presents the correlations between the variables assessed; read the notes for an explanation.

Table 1. Pearson correlations between attractiveness ratings and all explanatory variables
Pearson correlations between attractiveness ratings and all explanatory variables

Notes:

Correlation coefficients – The magnitude of correlation coefficients varies from zero (no correlation) to one (perfect correlation).  A minus sign indicates that higher values of one variable correlate with lower values of another variable, and vice versa.  A plus sign indicates that higher values of one variable correlate with higher values of another variable.

Asterisks – The entries marked by asterisks indicate values that are statistically significantly different from zero; the probability that the given entry is different from zero by chance factors alone is less than 5% (one asterisk) or less than 0.5% (two asterisks).

What follows is a discussion of some problems with the paper.

The authors assessed cardiovascular endurance as a proxy for health to investigate whether attractiveness ratings are associated with health.  However, health and physical fitness are not the same concepts.  Health is a quality measure and physical fitness is a performance measure.  For instance, the typical regularly exercising 40-year-old will easily be physically fitter than the typical sedentary 20-year-old, but the reverse will be true for health.  Assessing quality is not an easy task, and one will usually employ a battery of performance measures to make inferences about health, but still, physical fitness and health should not be confused with each other.  Whereas cardiovascular endurance diminishes with both cardiovascular and respiratory system diseases, in young individuals, lower values of cardiovascular endurance are not necessarily indicative of poor health.  After all, normal oxygen utilization is a lot lower than VO2max, and disease-free individuals with a below average VO2max will typically do a fine job at living.  VO2max can be made to increase by regularly participating in endurance exercises.  Higher VO2max values will be found in women that are more athletic, and more athletic-looking women also tend to be less feminine-looking, i.e., of diminished physical attractiveness as far as most people are concerned.  Therefore, the authors’ use of cardiovascular endurance as a proxy for health and subsequent use of this proxy to examine a possible association between attractiveness ratings and health does not appear to be appropriate.

Regarding the skin color find, here is what the authors wrote:

The present results also show a positive link between attractiveness and skin tone, with those possessing darker-toned skin receiving higher ratings of attractiveness. Although many cross-cultural studies have suggested that paler skin is generally regarded as more attractive by human populations (Aoki, 2002, Barber, 1995, Bond & Cash, 1992, Hill, 2002 and Sahay & Piran, 1997), several studies have suggested that, for Caucasian faces in the Europe and America, moderate levels of tanning are regarded as more attractive than no tanning (e.g., Fink et al., 2001 and Sahay & Piran, 1997). A paler coloring has been linked to both youth and fertility levels during the menstrual cycle (e.g., Frost, 1988 and Van den Berghe & Frost, 1986); therefore, one might have argued that paler skin on the female body should be regarded as more attractive and healthy. However, skin color may be a culturally based status symbol indicating that someone with a tan can afford the free time necessary to acquire one, just as, in the 18th century, a paler complexion indicated higher status as it showed that an individual did not have to undertake manual outdoor labor (Etcoff, 1999). If this were the case, then one might expect preference for a darker skin tone to extend to all ethnic groups within a society. However, the preference for a more tanned appearance seems to be largely specific to Caucasians in Western cultures (Bond & Cash, 1992, Hill, 2002 and Sahay & Piran, 1997).

The problem is with the statement, “If this were the case...”  In developing nations, lower class people still have to disproportionately labor in the sun, and in a number of geographic regions, the upper classes are naturally lighter, i.e., lighter even if one controls for the extent of sun exposure.  Therefore, there is no reason why one would expect a preference for sun-induced skin darkening in dark populations where the lower class is overrepresented among outdoor workers and/or where the upper class people are naturally lighter.

On the other hand, using 3D imagery is a step in the right direction and will help clarify a number of aesthetics issues in the future.

Reference

  1. Smith, K. L., Cornelissen, P. L., and Tovée, M. J., Color 3D bodies and judgements of human female attractiveness, Evol Hum Behav, 28, 48 (2007).
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Comments

Zonneschijn: Stop posting comments that are unrelated to the articles. I have repeatedly told you to stop using multiples names, not showcase ethnic beauty by using mixed ancestry/part-white women, and not leave more comments until I reply to your previous comments. Behave or you will be banned.

What's my comment isn't related to your article? erik, I just wanted to show everyone on here the pictures of golden skin tone girls look pretty. according to your article "Attractiveness ratings of three-dimensional female physiques in color".

Some milky skin I also like too. such as natalie glebova, Méav Ní Mhaolchatha (celtic singer), miss finland finalis 2006 and Hil Yesenia Hernandez ( miss earth 2006 from chile) however all of them are not what I especially like. I prefer audrey tautou the french actress and Milli Avital the Israeli actess the modestly, smart women with alittle bit boyist in their thinking and gentle at their behavier. ( both of them are famous from the movie Davinci code and Arabian night) they are the way better than the altra feminine without brains.






Erik : Another thing? u have asked me to stop leaving a pictures of
ethnic beauty by using mixed ancestry/part-white women? how about I did post the picture of european looking- ethnic childrens and women? on the article maria sheriff, what'd u consider about european looking among the ethnic group? which their culture and tradition fit them not into interbreed their blood with european race. such as muslim arabs with blue eyes and blond hair in dessert of morocco, the beduin with green eyes or clear christal eyes color in jordan? or the mongol with blond hair and blue eyes? what'd u give the explanation about those european looking-ethnic people then?

I 'm still look forward to your reply.

Erik : As long as u have no idea about the reason why ethnic groups like arabs in morocco dessert, some yemenien's tribe in dessert etc. have european looking? so u CANN'T CONSIDER "that European facial norms are overall the most derived among human populations"
why I have seen some dark skin Indian parents have white skin daugther who looks like Italian? or some tanned skin arab parents have blue eyes and blond hair children? if u cann't give me any explanation something else more than "they are a remnants of european" so u cann't consider that the european is the only one race that looks the most "derived" from monkey. according to the case of kashmiri with blond hair and rozasea cheeks or arabs with blue eyes somewhat, can be explained only one reason that is all races could develope their own beauty.

and I really have no idea about which race would be considered as the most derived features. I Agree with u in some point that caucasian have gracil features. but what should other races have to do with their features which u state "underdeveloping"? people having flat nose, dark skin, slant eyes or thick lips because of the geography where they are living.

How come this Idian boy with blond hair and green eyes? also the mongolian girl with blond hair and blue eyes?

why I have seen some dark skin Indian parents have white skin daugther who looks like Italian? or some tanned skin arab parents have blue eyes and blond hair children? if u cann’t give me any explanation something else more than “they are a remnants of european” so u cann’t consider that the european is the only one race that looks the most “derived” from monkey. according to the case of kashmiri with blond hair and rozasea cheeks or arabs with blue eyes somewhat, can be explained only one reason that is all races could develope their own beauty.

Arabs and Kashmiris are ethnic groups composed of hybrid racial populations. A brief study of some basic topics on genetic inheritance -- specifically on dominant and recessive genes -- should be sufficient for you to get a grasp on how the above can occur.

Arab Muslims tend to have large families, and the vagaries of inheritance in such cases often play themselves out in dramatic fashion, producing strikingly contrasting siblings -- not uncommonly to the point where a stranger might find it difficult to believe they are the product of the same parents. (This effect isn't restricted to Arabs, of course; in my experience it is more striking among Arabs than other hybrid populations I have encountered.)

Again, Z, you are being very impertinent and quickly turning this blog into a farce. Your defiant posting seems an attempt to wring some sort of admission out of Erik; if so, you would do better to state your question explicitly and be done (as have others) rather than anxiously spamming the blog.

OMG, IT'S MADELEINE !!! http://www.femininebeauty.info/images/smileys/bigsurprise.gif

zonneschijn :

according to the case of kashmiri with blond hair and rozasea cheeks or arabs with blue eyes somewhat, can be explained only one reason that is all races could develope their own beauty.

Sure, it's their "own beauty" ... as long as they resemble Europeans.
Woah, that sounds pretty Eurocentric, doesn't it ?
You're re-introducing the same point you're are supposed to be refuting as an antithesis to itself.
A sort of reverse and unintented "Begging of the Question"
What a loser !

Garbled Speech / Garbled Thinking

I'M IN UR INTERWEBZ

http://imgboot.com/images/Lammero/bicoloredeyescat.jpg

FRYING UR WHITES http://www.femininebeauty.info/images/smileys/gulp.gif

Seriously now ...
Let's play a little game. I call it:

"Spot The Wigger"

Check out these portraits of Black Albinos

They are all Black Albinos - except one.
There's a White guy with a "Bob Marley complex"
You have to spot it.

I know you can =)

link | Submitted by Der Wanderer on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 15:32.

OMG, IT'S MADELEINE !!! http://www.femininebeauty.info/images/smileys/bigsurprise.gif

zonneschijn :

according to the case of kashmiri with blond hair and rozasea cheeks or arabs with blue eyes somewhat, can be explained only one reason that is all races could develope their own beauty.

Sure, it's their "own beauty" ... as long as they resemble Europeans.

Kashmir throughout its history since the begining of time has been subject to mass invasions by various tribes including turkish/middle eastern/Possibly greeks (alexander the greats army) etc.. and the appearance including the light skin of many kashmiris can be attributed to these invasions. Kashmir therefore has a mix of different ethnic looks and although there are probably some many kashmiris who do look or may be mistaken for europeans with respect to there light skin, light hair/eye colour and overall phsical appearance. There are also a certain section of the kashmiris (muslim kashmiris) who not withstanding there light/dark eyes and light/dark hair (even red hair is not unheard of or uncommon amongst the kashmiris) whoose ethnic features are certainly not european by any stretch of the imagination and whom if you stuck one amongst a group of europeans would stand out due to there sharp prominent features (noses)which would certainly differentiate them from the europeans. If you stuck a european amongst a group of sharp prominent nosed kashmiris a european will without doubt blend in. These kashmiris do not look specifically ''european'' with respect to there physical ethnic features though you could say they look white i.e they are light skinned.

J. B. Ireland in his From Wall Street to Cashmere,
''The women have a composite face of Greek, Jew and Indian.8 ''

#9 | link | Submitted by Der Wanderer on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 15:32.

''Sure, it's their "own beauty" ... as long as they resemble Europeans.''

Just to further add to my older comment (anonymous). Sarcasm aside, your statement 'its there own beauty...as long as they resemble europeans makes no sense'. It cannot be your own beauty if it resembles someone else. You clearly have no idea about Kashmiri looks. The Kashmiris do not resemble Europeans no matter what you want to believe in your own 'little world'. Europeans wouldnt blend in with the Kashmiris nor would they be mistaken for them for the simple reason they are different looking people.

Superficial resemblances like skin/eye and hair colour cannot supersede more important things like facial structure, face length, skull shape, eyes etc... Even taking superficial resemblances into account the Kashmiris do not possess the pale colourless lifeless pale skin complexions of the northern europeans (erronously labelled/reffered to here as creamy white) or european complexions in general. Nor do they possess the colourless lifeless looking light hair/eye colour on average. Kashmiris do possess light hair/eyes but most have dark hair (black) due to sexual selection/preference. Therefore there is very little as far as even superficial resemblanes. Its hard to see whatother so called resemblances there are. There faces are not evocative of Europe. The Kashmiris would stand out amongst the Europeans its the Europeans who couldnt stand out amongst the Kashmiris. Even as far as the resemblance game goes the fact is whiteness never origionated in Europe. Its not the Kashmiris who resemble the European race its the Europeans who resemble the Kashmiris. The Kashmiris do not hadescend from european stock, they are the origional stock. Yes its there own beauty. There own phenotypes. Always has been, always will be.

#9 | link | Submitted by Der Wanderer on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 15:32.

''Sure, it's their "own beauty" ... as long as they resemble Europeans.''

Europeans are not Homogenous hence there is no such thing as the 'european look'. Europeans are unlike the chinese who look like alike and look like they belong to the same race.

Kashmir is the country located in central asia and on eurasian plate...kashmir people look same like turks , irans, afghans, azeries and other european country.....the eye colour of kashmiris are blue,hazel grey,green and browen....the hair colour among kashmiris also varies frm blonde to light brown even red also....they have very light and reddish skin.....

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