Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness
The facial width-to-height ratio (FWHR) influences social judgements like perceived aggression. This may be because FWHR is a sexually dimorphic feature, with males having higher FWHR than females. However, evidence for sexual dimorphism is mixed, little is known about how it varies with age, and th...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The Royal Society
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Royal Society Open Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.211500 |
| _version_ | 1797837676611633152 |
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| author | Stephanie Summersby Bonnie Harris Thomas F. Denson David White |
| author_facet | Stephanie Summersby Bonnie Harris Thomas F. Denson David White |
| author_sort | Stephanie Summersby |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The facial width-to-height ratio (FWHR) influences social judgements like perceived aggression. This may be because FWHR is a sexually dimorphic feature, with males having higher FWHR than females. However, evidence for sexual dimorphism is mixed, little is known about how it varies with age, and the relationship between sexual dimorphism and perceived aggressiveness is unclear. We addressed these gaps by measuring FWHR of 17 607 passport images of male and female faces across the lifespan. We found larger FWHR in males only in young adulthood, aligning with the stage most commonly associated with mate selection and intrasexual competition. However, the direction of dimorphism was reversed after 48 years of age, with females recording larger FWHRs than males. We then examined how natural variation in FWHR affected perceived aggressiveness. The relationship between FWHR and perceived aggressiveness was strongest for males at 27–33 and females at 34–61. Raters were most sensitive to differences in FWHR for young adult male faces, pointing to enhanced sensitivity to FWHR as a cue to aggressiveness. This may reflect a common mechanism for evaluating male aggressiveness from variability in structural (FWHR) and malleable (emotional expression) aspects of the face. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:28:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e8d6b31743b743f7af2f1a1cae48188f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2054-5703 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:28:31Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | The Royal Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Royal Society Open Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-e8d6b31743b743f7af2f1a1cae48188f2023-04-28T10:43:18ZengThe Royal SocietyRoyal Society Open Science2054-57032022-05-019510.1098/rsos.211500Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressivenessStephanie Summersby0Bonnie Harris1Thomas F. Denson2David White3School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, AustraliaSchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, AustraliaSchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, AustraliaSchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, AustraliaThe facial width-to-height ratio (FWHR) influences social judgements like perceived aggression. This may be because FWHR is a sexually dimorphic feature, with males having higher FWHR than females. However, evidence for sexual dimorphism is mixed, little is known about how it varies with age, and the relationship between sexual dimorphism and perceived aggressiveness is unclear. We addressed these gaps by measuring FWHR of 17 607 passport images of male and female faces across the lifespan. We found larger FWHR in males only in young adulthood, aligning with the stage most commonly associated with mate selection and intrasexual competition. However, the direction of dimorphism was reversed after 48 years of age, with females recording larger FWHRs than males. We then examined how natural variation in FWHR affected perceived aggressiveness. The relationship between FWHR and perceived aggressiveness was strongest for males at 27–33 and females at 34–61. Raters were most sensitive to differences in FWHR for young adult male faces, pointing to enhanced sensitivity to FWHR as a cue to aggressiveness. This may reflect a common mechanism for evaluating male aggressiveness from variability in structural (FWHR) and malleable (emotional expression) aspects of the face.https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.211500aggressionimpression formationface perceptionperson perceptionsocial cognitionhuman evolution |
| spellingShingle | Stephanie Summersby Bonnie Harris Thomas F. Denson David White Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness Royal Society Open Science aggression impression formation face perception person perception social cognition human evolution |
| title | Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| title_full | Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| title_fullStr | Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| title_short | Tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width-to-height ratio across the lifespan: implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| title_sort | tracking sexual dimorphism of facial width to height ratio across the lifespan implications for perceived aggressiveness |
| topic | aggression impression formation face perception person perception social cognition human evolution |
| url | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.211500 |
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