Abstract
Physical characteristics, such as a V-shaped torso and body hair, are visually salient information that reflect a potential mate’s immunocompetence, status, and reproductive potential (Dixson et al. 2014; Singh 1994), and are thus often desired by women. Recently, the use of eye tracking in attraction research has demonstrated that visual patterns are behavioral indices of interest in a potential mate. Two studies investigated women’s visual perception of men’s attractiveness across different phases of the menstrual cycle (i.e., low vs. high fertility) while manipulating hair distribution across waist to chest ratios. In study 1 (N = 83), men with low (0.7) waist to chest ratios were rated as more attractive, and women focused most of their visual attention to the upper region of the body (i.e., head and midriff). There were no differences in visual attention as a function of fertility status. Study 2 (N = 53) replicated the findings from study 1 and found support for visual differences across the menstrual cycle using progesterone. Women viewed the head region (i.e., face) longer and took more time viewing men in general during the fertile phase of their menstrual cycle (low progesterone) compared to the nonfertile phase (high progesterone). Study 2 also showed that visual attention to the head and chest region was influenced by short-term mating orientation. The findings add to the existing literature on visual attention and attraction, and they contribute new findings in determining differences in visual perception across the menstrual cycle and mating orientation in women.
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig1_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig2_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig3_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig4_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig5_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig6_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig7_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs40806-019-00190-4/MediaObjects/40806_2019_190_Fig8_HTML.png)
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alexander, R. D., & Noonan, K. M. (1979). Concealment of ovulation, parental care, and human social evolution. In N. A. Chagnon & W. Irons (Eds.), Evolutionary biology and human social behavior: an anthropological perspective (pp. 436–453). Belmont, CA: Duxbury Press.
Anderson, U. S., Perea, E. F., Vaughn Becker, D., Ackerman, J. M., Shapiro, J. R., Neuberg, S. L., & Kenrick, D. T. (2010). I only have eyes for you: ovulation redirects attention (but not memory) to attractive men. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 46(5), 804–808.
Baker, R. R., & Bellis, M. A. (1995). Human sperm competition: copulation, masturbation and infidelity. London: Chapman and Hall.
Bates, D., Maechler, M., Bolker, B., Walker, B. (2015). Fitting Linear Mixed-Effects Models Using lme4. Journal of Statistical Software, 67(1), 1-48. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v067.i01.
Blake, K., Dixson, B. J. W., O’Dean, S. M., & Denson, T. F. (2016). Standardized methodological protocols for measuring the effects of fertility on women’s behavior: a data-driven approach contrasting counting and hormonal methods. Hormones and Behavior, 81, 74–83.
Braun, M. F., & Bryan, A. (2006). Female waist to hip and male waist to shoulder ratios as determinants of romantic partner desirability. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 23(5), 805–819.
Buss, D. M., & Schmitt, D. P. (1993). Sexual strategies theory: an evolutionary perspective on human mating. Psychological Review, 100, 204–232.
Buss, D. M., & Schmitt, D. P. (2019). Mate preferences and their behavrioal manifistations. Annual Review of Psychology, 70, 77–110.
Buunk, B. P., & Dijkstra, P. (2005). A narrow waist versus broad shoulders: sex and age differences in the jealousy-evoking characteristics of a rival’s body build. Personality and Individual Differences, 39, 379–389.
DeBruine, L. M., Hahn, A. C., & Jones, B. C. (2019). Does the interaction between partnership status and average progesterone level predict women’s preferences for facial masculinity? Hormones and Behavior, 107, 80–82.
Dijkstra, P., & Buunk, B. P. (2001). Sex differences in the jealousy-evoking nature of a rival’s body build. Evolution and Human Behavior, 22, 335–341.
Dixson, B. J., & Brooks, R. C. (2013). The role of facial hair in women’s perceptions of men’s attractiveness, health, masculinity, and parenting abilities. Evolution and Human Behavior, 34(3), 236–241.
Dixson, B. J., & Rantala, M. J. (2016). The role of facial and body hair distribution in women’s judgments of men’s sexual attractiveness. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 45, 877–889.
Dixson, B. J., & Vasey, P. L. (2012). Beards augment perceptions of men’s age, social status, and aggressiveness, but not attractiveness. Behavioral Ecology, 23, 481–490.
Dixson, A., Halliwell, G., East, R., Wignarajah, P., & Anderson, M. (2003). Masculine somatotype and hirsuteness as determinants of sexual attractiveness to women. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 32(1), 29–39.
Dixson, B. J., Dixson, A. F., Bishop, P. J., & Parish, A. (2010). Human physique and sexual attractiveness in men and women: a New Zealand-US comparative study. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39(3), 798–806.
Dixson, B. J., Tan, J. C., & Awasthy, M. (2013). Do women’s preferences for men’s facial hair change with reproductive status? Behavioral Ecology, 24(3), 708–716.
Dixson, B. J., Grimshaw, G. M., Ormsby, D. K., & Dixson, A. F. (2014). Eye-tracking women’s preferences for men’s somatotypes. Evolution and Human Behavior, 35, 73–79.
Dixson, B. J., Rantala, M. J., Melo, E. F., & Brooks, R. C. (2017). Beards and the big city: displays of masculinity may be amplified under crowded conditions. Evolution and Human Behavior, 38, 259–264.
Dixson, B. J., Blake, K. R., Denson, T. F., Gooda-Vossos, A., O’Dean, S. M., Sulikowski, D., … & Brooks, R. C. (2018a). The role of mating context and fecundability in women’s preferences for men’s facial masculinity and beardedness. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 93, 90–102.
Dixson, B. J., Lee, A. J., Blake, K. R., Jasienska, G., & Marcinkowska, U. M. (2018b). Women’s preference for men’s beards show no relation to their ovarian cycle phase and sex hormone levels. Hormones and Behavior, 97, 137–144.
Dixson, B. J., Rantala, M. J., & Brooks, R. C. (2019). Cross-cultural variation in women’s preferences for men’s body hair. Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, 1–17.
Fan, J., Dai, W., Liu, F., & Wu, J. (2005). Visual perception of male body attractiveness. Proceedings of the Royal Society, 272, 219–226.
Gangestad, S. W., & Thornhill, R. (1999). Menstrual cycle variation in women’s preferences for the scent of symmetrical men. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 265, 927–933.
Gangestad, S. W., Haselton, M. G., Welling, L. M., Gildersleeve, K., Pillsworth, E. G., Burriss, R. P., Larson, C. M., & Puts, D. A. (2016). How valid are assessments of conception probability in ovulatory cycle research? Evaluations, recommendations, and theoretical implications. Evolution and Human Behavior, 37, 85–96.
Garza, R., Heredia, R. R., & Cieślicka, A. B. (2016). Male and female perception of physical attractiveness: an eye movement study. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(1), 1–16.
Garza, R., Heredia, R. R., & Cieslicka, A. B. (2017). An eye tracking examination of men’s attractiveness by conceptive risk women. Evolutionary Psychology, 15(1), 1–11.
Geary, D. C. (2010). Male, female: the evolution of human sex differences (2nd ed.). Washington, D.C: American Psychological Association.
Genovese, J. E. C. (2008). Physique correlates with reproductive success in an archival sample of delinquent youth. Evolutionary Psychology, 6, 369–385.
Gildersleeve, K., Haselton, M. G., & Fales, M. R. (2014). Do women’s mate preferences change across the ovulatory cycle? A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 140, 1205–1259. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035438.
Henss, R. (1995). Waist-to-hip ratio and attractiveness. Replication and extension. Personality and Individual Differences, 19(4), 479-488.
Hughes, S. M., & Gallup, G. G., Jr. (2002). Sex differences in morphological predictors of sexual behavior: shoulder to hip and waist to hip ratios. Evolution and Human Behavior, 24, 173–178.
Jackson, J. J., & Kirkpatrick, L. A. (2007). The structure and measurment of human mating strategies: Toward a multidimensional model of sociosexuality. Evolution and Human Behavior, 28, 382–391.
Janssen, I., Katzmarzyk, P. T., & Ross, R. (2004). Waist circumference and not body mass index explains obesity-related health risk. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 79(3), 379–384.
Jones, B. C., Hahn, A. C., & DeBruine, L. M. (2019). Ovulation, sex hormones, and women’s mating psychology. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 23, 51–62.
Jünger, J., Kordsmeyer, T. L., Gerlach, T. M., & Penke, L. (2018). Fertile women evaluate male bodies as more attractive, regardless of masculinity. Evolution and Human Behavior, 39, 412–423.
Kasperk, C. H., Wakley, G. K., Hierl, T., & Ziegler, R. (1997). Gonadal and adrenal androgens are potent regulators of human bone cell metabolism in vitro. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 12, 464–471.
Lassek, W. D., & Gaulin, S. J. (2009). Costs and benefits of fat-free muscle mass in men: Relationship to mating success, dietary requirements, and native immunity. Evolution and Human Behavior, 30(5), 322–328.
Little, A. C., Jones, B. C., & Burriss, R. P. (2007). Preferences for masculinity in male bodies change across the menstrual cycle. Hormones and Behavior, 51(5), 633–639.
Maisey, D. S., Vale, E. L. E., Cornelissen, P. L., & Tovee, M. J. (1999). Characteristics of male attractiveness for women. The Lancet, 353.
Marcinkowska, U. M., Galbarczyk, A., & Jasienska, G. (2018a). La donna è mobile? Lack of cyclical shifts in facial symmetry, and facial and body masculinity preferences—a hormone based study. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 88, 47–53.
Marcinkowska, U. M., Kaminski, G., Little, A. C., & Jasienska, G. (2018b). Average ovarian hormone levels, rather than daily values and their fluctuations, are related to facial preferences among women. Hormones and Behavior, 102, 114–119.
Neave, N., & Shields, K. (2008). The effects of facial hair manipulation on female perceptions of attractiveness, masculinity, and dominance in male faces. Personality and Individual Differences, 45(5), 373–377.
Penton-Voak, I. S., & Perrett, D. I. (2000). Female preferences for male faces changes cyclically: further evidence. Evolution and Human Behavior, 21, 39–48.
Price, M. E., Pound, N., Dunn, J., Hopkins, S., & Kang, J. (2013). Body shape preferences: associations with rater body shape and sociosexuality. PLoS One, 8(1), 1–9.
Prokop, P., Rantala, M. J., & Fančovičová, J. (2012). Is plasticity in mating preferences adapted to perceived exposure to pathogens? Acta Ethologica, 15, 135–140.
Prokop, P., Rantala, M. J., Usak, M., & Senay, I. (2013). Is a woman’s preference for chest hair in men influenced by parasite threat? Archives of Sexual Behavior, 42, 1181–1189.
Provost, M. P., Troje, N. F., & Quinsey, V. L. (2008). Short-term mating strategies and attraction to masculinity in point-light walkers. Evolution and Human Behavior, 29, 65–69.
Puts, D., Bailey, D. H., Cardenas, R. A., Burris, P., Welling, L. L. M., Wheatley, J. R., et al. (2013). Women’s attractiveness changes with estradiol and progesterone across the ovulatory cycle. Hormones and Behavior, 63, 13–19.
Rantala, M.J. (1999). Human nakedness: Adaptation against ectoparasites? International Journal for Parasitology, 29, 1987–1989.
Rantala, M. J., Polkki, M., & Rantala, L. M. (2010). Preference for human male body hair changes across the menstrual cycle and menopause. Behavioral Ecology, 21, 419–423.
Roney, J. R., Simmons, Z. L., & Gray, P. B. (2011). Changes in estradiol predict within-women shifts in attraction to facial cues of men’s testosterone. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 36, 742–749.
Singh, D. (1993). Adaptive significance of female physical attractiveness: role of waist to hip ratio. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 293–307.
Singh, D. (1994). Is thin really beautiful and good? Relationship between waist to hip ratio (WHR) and female attractiveness. Personality and Individual Differences, 16, 123–132.
Suschinsky, K. D., Elias, L. J., & Krupp, D. B. (2007). Looking for Ms. Right: Allocating attention to facilitate mate choice decisions. Evolutionary Psychology, 5, 428–441.
Swami, V., & Tovee, M. J. (2005). Male physical attractiveness in Britain and Malaysia: a cross-cultural study. Body Image, 2, 383–393.
Swami, V., Smith, J., Tsiokris, A., Georgiades, C., Sangareau, Y., Tovee, M. J., & Furnham, A. (2007). Male physical attractiveness in Britain and Greece: a cross-cultural study. The Journal of Social Psychology, 14(7), 15–26.
Thornhill, R., & Gangestad, S. W. (1999). The scent of symmetry: a human sex pheromone that signals fitness? Evolution and Human Behavior, 20, 175–201.
Valentova, J. V., Varella, M. A. C., Bártová, K., Štěrbová, Z., & Dixson, B. J. W. (2017). Mate preferences and choices for facial and body hair in heterosexual women and homosexual men: influence of sex, population, homogamy, and imprinting-like effect. Evolution and Human Behavior, 38, 241–248.
Wilcox, A. J., Dunson, D. B., Weinberg, C. R., Trussell, J., & Baird, D. D. (2001). Likelihood of conception with a single act of intercourse: providing benchmark rates for assessment of post-coital contraceptive. Contraception, 63, 211–215.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Garza, R., Byrd-Craven, J. Fertility Status in Visual Processing of Men’s Attractiveness. Evolutionary Psychological Science 5, 328–342 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-019-00190-4
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40806-019-00190-4