14 DAY TRIAL // Would you like to know what men and women really prefer? Then, you should read a new book signaled by Daily Mail, "The Psychology Of Physical Attraction", written by psychologists Viren Swami and Adrian Furnham. The book comprises meta-analyses of researches published in the last years on the issue of mutual attraction between men and women.
First, the authors tackle the issue of weight. Judging for what you see on today's catwalk, you could say the Earth is dominated by an anorexic race. In reality, studies show that people do not enjoy extreme slenderness, but normal weight, and those caught up in an accident are far more likely to be rescued if they are of an average weight than underweight or overweight persons.
Moreover, ideal body weight is a strong cultural factor. In poor countries, affording to eat enough to be fatter is a sign of wealth, thus a desirable trait. In a rich country, rather lower classes enjoy the junk food connected to increased body weight.
"As you get richer, you get thinner. Where food is scarce, tubbier women are thought of as more attractive," said Furnham.
And there come the boobs. Even if many say so, breast size has little to do with fertility or health, but the taste of big breasts appear to be personal and cultural. Yet, body shape appears to be more important than breast size.
Many researches point that a waist/hip ratio (WHR) of 0.7 to 0.8 in women characterize the most attractive individual, and departures from these values decrease the sexual appeal. And the value is relative: it does not refer to how narrow her belt is, but how small her waist is compared with the hips.
"Young women can be chubby, but still have a low WHR. As women get older, their waists thicken and their fertility goes down in proportion to their age - that explains why a slim waist, a signal of fertility, is attractive," wrote the authors.
But even this common concept proved to be cultural. The Tanzanian Hadza tribe, one of the oldest human populations (they are relict Bushmen in Eastern Africa), who still live as hunters-gatherers, are totally indifferent to the female WHR value, while an isolated tribe, the Matsigenka of southern Peru, simply prefer women with large bellies (many western countries would really be the heaven for those men). After all, in the cold of the Andes, a warm mattress...
In fact, it's a question of resources: when they are scarce, being overweight denotes good nutrition, while today this is linked to sterility, heart conditions, atherosclerosis, diabetes and other health issues.
Another aspect: are women really mad for tall men? Even a new research shows that the best is 5 % over the average value. But no more, as exaggerated height is linked to health issues. In fact, most studies shows that the average height is the most attractive.
Female hairlessness on women is an indicator of youth and fertility, a healthy load of estrogens (whose decline with the menopause can cause the increase of body hair). But complete hairlessness on women and men can result unattractive in many cultures, being perceived as a pre-teen infertile look. Male depilation, common in Western societies, is seen as cultural. And the female Brazilian bikini style is a cultural issue as well.
The authors signal a 1979 research in singles' bars: with the approaching of the evening, people found individuals of the opposite sex as more appealing. The risk of of warming the sheets alone lowered the threshold for attractiveness.
The skin tones too varied in time as regards the attractiveness criteria. One century ago, tanned skin showed that the person spent a lot of time outdoors, on agriculture or other works, thus belonging to low classes, while rich people afforded to remain indoors all day, displaying a pale beautiful skin. But now, tanned skin can mean you have just returned from a holiday in the Seychelles Islands, thus you are an accommodated person.
The authors also signal the symmetry issue: the healthiest genetics deliver the most symmetric faces, as symmetry betrays increased homeostasis (body's ability to fight damages). Women will look for masculine males during the ovulation period (the peak of their fertility), while on long term they will prefer men with feminine traits, like plump lips and big eyes, as the last ones are better parents.
The beard issue is complicated as well: some studies show that bearded men are usually perceived as appearing older and more masculine, dominant, courageous and confident, but not especially attractive. Some women even associate beards with being dirty.