Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women
Human morphological sexual dimorphism and fluctuating asymmetry have been suggested to signal ‘individual quality’ and are therefore expected to covary as well as to correlate with surrogate fitness/quality measures like attractiveness and dominance. While some case studies indee...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-02-01
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| Series: | Symmetry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/12/2/236 |
| _version_ | 1818039836762701824 |
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| author | Stefan Van Dongen Omid Ekrami Peter Claes |
| author_facet | Stefan Van Dongen Omid Ekrami Peter Claes |
| author_sort | Stefan Van Dongen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Human morphological sexual dimorphism and fluctuating asymmetry have been suggested to signal ‘individual quality’ and are therefore expected to covary as well as to correlate with surrogate fitness/quality measures like attractiveness and dominance. While some case studies indeed found support for these hypotheses, the overall evidence is not overwhelming. However, most previous research used a limited number of landmarks to quantify masculinity and asymmetry. We here present results based on high-density 3D scans covering the entire facial area. In spite of these more detailed measurements, no significant associations were detected. These results are in line with conclusions of recent meta-analyses and cast doubt on the role of masculinity and fluctuating asymmetry as signals of (genetic) quality. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:04:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0a1f17657c3b49a78ee55b12cd0b3da1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-8994 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:04:58Z |
| publishDate | 2020-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Symmetry |
| spelling | doaj.art-0a1f17657c3b49a78ee55b12cd0b3da12022-12-22T01:56:41ZengMDPI AGSymmetry2073-89942020-02-0112223610.3390/sym12020236sym12020236Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and WomenStefan Van Dongen0Omid Ekrami1Peter Claes2Evolutionary Ecology Group, Biology Department, Antwerp University, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumEvolutionary Ecology Group, Biology Department, Antwerp University, 2610 Wilrijk, BelgiumMedical Imaging Research Center, Universitair Ziekenhuis Gasthuisberg, 3000 Leuven, BelgiumHuman morphological sexual dimorphism and fluctuating asymmetry have been suggested to signal ‘individual quality’ and are therefore expected to covary as well as to correlate with surrogate fitness/quality measures like attractiveness and dominance. While some case studies indeed found support for these hypotheses, the overall evidence is not overwhelming. However, most previous research used a limited number of landmarks to quantify masculinity and asymmetry. We here present results based on high-density 3D scans covering the entire facial area. In spite of these more detailed measurements, no significant associations were detected. These results are in line with conclusions of recent meta-analyses and cast doubt on the role of masculinity and fluctuating asymmetry as signals of (genetic) quality.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/12/2/236fluctuating asymmetrymasculinitydevelopmental instabilitysexual dimorphismgenetic quality |
| spellingShingle | Stefan Van Dongen Omid Ekrami Peter Claes Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women Symmetry fluctuating asymmetry masculinity developmental instability sexual dimorphism genetic quality |
| title | Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women |
| title_full | Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women |
| title_fullStr | Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women |
| title_full_unstemmed | Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women |
| title_short | Lack of Correlation between Facial Sexual Dimorphism, Fluctuating Asymmetry and Self-Perceived Attractiveness in Men and Women |
| title_sort | lack of correlation between facial sexual dimorphism fluctuating asymmetry and self perceived attractiveness in men and women |
| topic | fluctuating asymmetry masculinity developmental instability sexual dimorphism genetic quality |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/12/2/236 |
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