Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Shifts in Masculinity Preferences Across the Menstrual Cycle: Still Not There

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Sex Roles Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Harris (2011) failed to find support for the popular hypothesis that women are attracted to masculine-faced men when conception is likely but attracted to feminine-faced men during other menstrual cycle phases. In response, DeBruine et al. (2010) wrote a commentary criticizing Harris theoretical analysis and data (e.g., sample age). The current paper addresses those criticisms with new data analysis, additional literature review, and logical arguments. Harris’ results are not attributable to her sample’s age; no preference shift was found for the subsample of women under 30 years old and no hint of an interaction existed between participant age group and menstrual cycle phase. This work also revisits the questionable assumptions inherent in the cycle shift hypothesis and reviews literature that suggests such assumptions are not tenable.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bellis, M. A., & Baker, R. R. (1990). Do females promote sperm competition? Data for humans. Animal Behaviour, 40, 997–999. doi:10.1016/S0003-3472(05)81008-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braude, S., Tang-Martinez, Z., & Taylor, G. (1999). Stress, testosterone, and the immunoredistribution hypothesis. Behavioral Ecology, 10, 345–350. doi:10.1093/beheco/10.3.345.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeBruine, L. M., Jones, B. C., Frederick, D. A., Haselton, M. G., Penton-Voak, I. S., & Perrett, D. I. (2010). Evidence for menstrual cycle shifts in women’s preferences for masculinity: A response to Harris (2011) “Menstrual Cycle and Facial Preferences Reconsidered”. Evolutionary Psychology, 8, 768–775.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Durante, K. M., Li, N. P., & Haselton, M. G. (2008). Changes in women’s choice of dress across the ovulatory cycle: Naturalistic and laboratory task-based evidence. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 1451–1460. doi:10.1177/0146167208323103.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Durante, K. M., Griskevicius, V., Hill, S. E., Perilloux, C., & Li, N. P. (2011). Ovulation, female competition, and product choice: Hormonal influences on consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 37, 921–934. doi:10.1086/656575.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fimmel, S., & Zouboulis, C. C. (2005). Influence of physiological androgen levels on wound healing and immune status in men. The Aging Male, 8, 166–174. doi:10.1080/13685530500233847.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Folstad, I., & Karter, A. J. (1992). Parasites, bright males, and the immunocompetence handicap. The American Naturalist, 139, 603–622.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gangestad, S. W., Thornhill, R., & Garver, C. E. (2002). Changes in women’s sexual interests and their partners’ mate-retention tactics across the menstrual cycle: Evidence for shifting conflicts of interest. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 269, 975–982. doi:10.1098/rspb.2001.1952.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gangestad, S. W., Thornhill, R., & Garver-Apgar, C. E. (2005). Women’s sexual interests across the ovulatory cycle depend on primary partner development instability. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 272, 2023–2027. doi:10.1098/rspb.2005.3112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Granger, D. A., Booth, A., & Johnson, D. R. (2000). Human aggression and enumerative measures of immunity. Psychosomatic Medicine, 62, 583–590.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gueguen, N. (2009a). Menstrual cycle phases and female receptivity to a courtship solicitation: An evaluation in a nightclub. Evolution and Human Behavior, 30, 351–355. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2009.03.004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gueguen, N. (2009b). The receptivity of women to courtship solicitation across the menstrual cycle: A field experiment. Biological Psychology, 80, 321–324. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2008.11.004.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, C. (2011). Menstrual cycle and facial preferences reconsidered. Sex Roles, 64, 669–681. doi:10.1007/s11199-010-9772-8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Haselton, M. G., & Gangestad, S. W. (2006). Conditional expression of women’s desires and men’s mate guarding across the ovulatory cycle. Hormones and Behavior, 49, 509–518. doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2005.10.006.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hönekopp, J., Rudolph, U., Beier, L., Liebert, A., & Müller, C. (2007). Physical attractiveness of face and body as indicators of physical fitness in men. Evolution and Human Behavior, 28, 106–111. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2006.09.001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, B. C., Little, A. C., Boothroyd, L. G., DeBruine, L. M., Feinberg, D. R., Smith, M. J. L., … Perrett, D. I. (2005). Commitment to relationships and preferences for femininity and apparent health in faces are strongest on days of the menstrual cycle when progesterone level is high. Hormones and Behavior, 48, 283-290. doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2005.03.010

  • Little, A. C., Penton-Voak, I. S., Burt, D. M., & Perrett, D. I. (2002). Evolution and individual differences in the perception of attractiveness: How cyclic hormonal changes and self-perceived attractiveness influence female preferences for male faces. In G. Rhodes & L. A. Zebrowitz (Eds.), Facial Attractiveness: Evolutionary, cognitive, and social perspectives (pp. 59–90). Westport: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neave, N., Laing, S., Fink, B., & Manning, J. T. (2003). Second to fourth digit ratio, testosterone and perceived male dominance. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 270, 2167–2172. doi:10.1098/rspb.2003.2502.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Penton-Voak, I. S., & Chen, J. Y. (2004). High salivary testosterone is linked to masculine male facial appearance in humans. Evolution and Human Behavior, 25, 229–241. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2004.04.003.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Penton-Voak, I. S., & Perrett, D. I. (2000). Female preference for male faces changes cyclically: Further evidence. Evolution and Human Behavior, 21, 39–48. doi:10.1016/S1090-5138(99)00033-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Penton-Voak, I. S., Perrett, D. I., Castles, D. L., Kobayashi, T., Burt, D. M., Murray, L. K., et al. (1999). Female preference for male faces changes cyclically. Nature, 399, 741–742. doi:10.1038/21557.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Perrett, D. I., Lee, K. J., Penton-Voak, I., Rowland, D., Yoshikawa, S., Burt, D. M., … Akamatsu, S. (1998). Effects of sexual dimorphism on facial attractiveness. Nature, 394, 884-886. doi:10.1038/29772

  • Peters, M. C., Simmons, L. W., & Rhodes, G. I. (2008). Testosterone is associated with mating success but not attractiveness or masculinity in human males. Animal Behaviour, 76, 297–303. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.02.008.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peters, M., Simmons, L. W., & Rhodes, G. I. (2009). Preferences across the menstrual cycle for masculinity and symmetry in photographs of male faces and bodies. PLoS ONE, 4, 1–7. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0004138.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pillsworth, E., & Haselton, M. (2006). Male sexual attractiveness predicts differential ovulatory shifts in female extra-pair attraction and male mate retention. Evolution and Human Behavior, 27, 247–258. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2005.10.002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, M. L., Buchanan, K. L., & Evans, M. R. (2004). Testing the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis: A review of the evidence. Animal Behaviour, 68, 227–239. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2004.05.001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roney, J. R., Hanson, K. N., Durante, K. M., & Maestripieri, D. (2006). Reading men’s faces: Women’s mate attractiveness judgments track men’s testosterone and interest in infants. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 273, 2169–2175. doi:10.1098/rspb.2006.3569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simmons, J. P., Nelson, L. D., & Simonsohn, U. (2011). False-positive psychology: Undisclosed flexibility in data collection and analysis allows presenting anything as significant. Psychological Science, 22, 1359–1366. doi:10.1177/0956797611417632.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • van Bokhoven, I., van Goozen, S. H. M., van Engeland, H., Schaal,B., Arseneault, L., Seguin, J. R., … Tremblay, R. E. (2006). Salivary testosterone and aggression, delinquency, and social dominance in a population based longitudinal study of adolescent males. Hormones and Behavior, 50, 118-125. doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2006.02.002

  • Wood, W., Kressel, L., Joshi, P., & Louie, B. (2012). Women’s mate preferences: A meta-analysis of menstrual cycle effects. Manuscript Submitted for Publication.

Download references

Acknowledgments

I thank Aimee Chabot and Wendy Wood for helpful comments and Noriko Coburn for assistance with manuscript preparation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychology Department, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr. #0109, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0109, USA

    Christine R. Harris

Authors
  1. Christine R. Harris
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Christine R. Harris.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Harris, C.R. Shifts in Masculinity Preferences Across the Menstrual Cycle: Still Not There. Sex Roles 69, 507–515 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-012-0229-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-012-0229-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation