Journal article
The Role of Facial and Body Hair Distribution in Women's Judgments of Men's Sexual Attractiveness
Archives of Sexual Behavior, Vol.45(4), pp.877-889
2016
PMID: 26292838
Abstract
Facial and body hair are some of the most visually conspicuous and sexually dimorphic of all men's secondary sexual traits. Both are androgen dependent, requiring the conversion of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone via the enzyme 5 alpha reductase 2 for their expression. While previous studies on the attractiveness of facial and body hair are equivocal, none have accounted as to how natural variation in their distribution may influence male sexual attractiveness. In the present study, we quantified men's facial and body hair distribution as either very light, light, medium, or heavy using natural photographs. We also tested whether women's fertility influenced their preferences for beards and body hair by comparing preferences among heterosexual women grouped according their fertility (high fertility, low fertility, and contraceptive use). Results showed that men with more evenly and continuously distributed facial hair from the lower jaw connecting to the mustache and covering the cheeks were judged as more sexually attractive than individuals with more patchy facial hair. Men with body hair were less attractive than when clean shaven, with the exception of images depicting some hair around the areolae, pectoral region, and the sternum that were significantly more attractive than clean-shaven bodies. However, there was no effect of fertility on women's preferences for men's beard or body hair distribution. These results suggest that the distribution of facial and body hair influences male attractiveness to women, possibly as an indication of masculine development and the synthesis of testosterone into dihydrotestosterone via 5 alpha reductase.
Details
- Title
- The Role of Facial and Body Hair Distribution in Women's Judgments of Men's Sexual Attractiveness
- Authors
- Barnaby J W Dixson (Author) - University of QueenslandMarkus J Rantala (Author) - University of Turku
- Publication details
- Archives of Sexual Behavior, Vol.45(4), pp.877-889
- Publisher
- Springer New York LLC
- DOI
- 10.1007/s10508-015-0588-z
- ISSN
- 1573-2800
- PMID
- 26292838
- Organisation Unit
- School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health - Psychology; Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99629737102621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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- Domestic collaboration
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- Web Of Science research areas
- Psychology, Clinical
- Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary
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