2024-04-07 13:52:22
However, previous studies analyzing the relationship between increasing age and attractiveness have been limited by their inability to accurately simulate human aging.
A recent study, published in the PubMed database, used computer simulations of facial aging to directly examine the effects of aging on attractiveness.
20 participants between the ages of 20 and 29 took part in the study, neutral photos of them were taken. These images were then processed by computer programs to create models of what each subject should look like at age 30, 40 and 50.
315 respondents then completed a survey in which they were asked to rate the attractiveness and masculinity or femininity of each image using a scale of 0 to 100.
Female attractiveness was found to decrease by an average of 10.4 points per decade and femininity by 7.59 points per decade. The biggest drop was found in women over 40 years old. Male attractiveness and masculinity remained largely stable until age 50, when attractiveness scores began to decline.
To understand these findings, it is useful to analyze attraction from the perspective of evolutionary biology. Many studies have shown that facial attractiveness and fertility are closely related. The greater and earlier decline in attractiveness for women compared to men may be related to their perceived chances of getting pregnant.
These results may also be related to hormonal effects, that is, specific anatomical changes in the facial bones that occur over time in both men and women.
The rate of mandibular aging in men has been found to be relatively constant, while women show earlier and more pronounced age-related changes in shape. Both men and women experience bone changes that eventually make the jaw more masculine, increasing a man’s perceived masculinity and a woman’s perceived femininity.
These findings are also significant from the point of view of social psychology. The large differences in attractiveness between women and men indicate inequalities in the perception of aging by gender. Interestingly, this difference is observed regardless of the gender of the person evaluating the photos.
Parengta pagal „Psychology Today“
2024-04-07 13:52:22