British Study Says Women Prefer "Girly Men"

[MrsSpringsteen]

Women see beefcakes as unfaithful and not very good dads, study says
Reuters
Updated: 7:33 p.m. ET Aug 7, 2007

LONDON - Forget the square jaw, rugged complexion and tough-guy macho attitude — what women really want is a man with full lips and feminine features, according to a British study published on Wednesday.

The findings add to previous research about masculinity and offer further insight into what people look for in others when choosing potential partners, said evolutionary psychologist Lynda Boothroyd, who led the study.

“What I’ve shown is that when people look at masculine faces they see them as being associated with dominance — which is a good thing in evolution but less good as a long-term partner,” she said in a telephone interview.

In the study, published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, the researchers asked more than 400 British men and women to judge digitally altered pictures of male faces made to look more masculine or feminine.

The participants were then asked to predict personality traits such as dominance, ambition, wealth and whether a person would be faithful or make a good parent, said Boothroyd, a researcher at Durham University.

But it wasn’t the macho men who came out ahead. The study showed these masculine types with larger noses, smaller eyes and thicker eyebrows were viewed as less faithful and worse parents.

Instead it was the “feminine” faces with wide eyes, finer features and thinner, more curved eyebrows that were chosen as the best potential long-term mates, Boothroyd said.

And faces that also appeared healthier — like those with better complexion — were also seen as more desirable in all personality traits. This helps to counter claims that masculinity is best viewed as an indicator of genetic fitness and immunity to disease, Boothroyd said.

“Here what I’m showing is healthiness is really positive and masculinity isn’t,” Boothroyd said. “We shouldn’t be thinking about masculinity in terms of health, which is a totally different thing in women’s minds, but in terms of social dominance.”

[BVS]

It's discrimination against men.



So it is true?

[joyfulgirl]

My boyfriends have traditionally had a more balanced masculine and feminine nature. I have absolutely no interest in, nor attraction to, really macho guys.

[BVS]

On a serious note...

What's considered masculine and feminine has always been in flux with societies, something this article seems to have missed.

Watch any period piece from late 1700/ early 1800 and you'll find men in Europe in powdered wigs, make up, and tights.

Some cultures long hair is considered masuline and vice versa.

Body piercings, make up, body shape and size all dictated by society and culture as to what is masculine or feminine.






I'm having a hard time understanding this last part:

And faces that also appeared healthier — like those with better complexion — were also seen as more desirable in all personality traits. This helps to counter claims that masculinity is best viewed as an indicator of genetic fitness and immunity to disease, Boothroyd said.

“Here what I’m showing is healthiness is really positive and masculinity isn’t,” Boothroyd said. “We shouldn’t be thinking about masculinity in terms of health, which is a totally different thing in women’s minds, but in terms of social dominance.”

Seems to be somewhat contradictory, maybe I'm reading it wrong.

[Caroni]

Manly men!!!!!


I can´t stand a girly straigth man

[unico]

this study seems kinda weird to me. i don't think i've ever equated looks with fidelity. i usually find insight in personality rather than looks. at least...i think i do. i haven't updated my glasses prescription in ages.

[lynnok]

Was the author of this article trapped in a room with a tape loop of James Blunt singing "Beautiful" and pictures of him flashing randomly on screens?

Wait....I just described my own personal hell.

When I think girly-boys I think immediately "will live in parents basement till 35"

Geeze, another instance of boys/men being feminized. Must. Stop. Now.

[BVS]

Originally posted by lynnok


Geeze, another instance of boys/men being feminized. Must. Stop. Now.

But what does that even mean?

[Varitek]

Originally posted by unico
this study seems kinda weird to me. i don't think i've ever equated looks with fidelity. i usually find insight in personality rather than looks. at least...i think i do. i haven't updated my glasses prescription in ages.

I totally agree - There are plenty of burly, muscular "manly" looking guys who are quite sweet and sensitive. And plenty of skinny little...whatever makes a guy "girly"....who are jerks and I wouln't want to let near my eggs or kids.

[lynnok]

does looking more feminine make them seem safe?

Thinner curved eyebrows? Will men be plucking their eyebrows now? Creepy.

[MrsSpringsteen]

Originally posted by joyfulgirl
I have absolutely no interest in, nor attraction to, really macho guys.

Neither do I- if macho means huge ego, insensitive, aggressive, rude, and I could go on..those are some of the traits I associate with macho/machismo. Honestly a physical appearance that I associate with macho and those types of traits turns me off, but I would get to know someone before making a complete judgment. This study is obviously focused on the physical.

But going beyond the physical, I also prefer a more "feminine" emotional and psychological makeup in a man as well. I don't define it as being feminine though, I define it as merely being human and secure in yourself- and the type of human that I personally prefer. I really wish we could get beyond the stereotype of that kind of man being defined as "feminized" and not masculine. For me it is actually the ultimate in masculinity. And masculinity for me is not defined by physical appearance.

[CTU2fan]

Hmm, either I'm out of touch or the author is, or it's a British thing. Girls/women I know definitely prefer more masculine/rough/thug men, whatever you want to call it, over the "meterosexual" type. I think there was & is a certain group of women who like that sensitive guy, but generally I think they like manly men.

[joyfulgirl]

There's a wide range of types of men that exist between macho and girly. So just because someone can't be described as macho doesn't mean that they must be girly.

Also, I don't think being "masculine" has anything whatsoever to do with being "rough/thug men." It's more an inner confidence. Rough/thug is what happens when men are insecure and over compensate.

[Varitek]

Originally posted by joyfulgirl
Also, I don't think being "masculine" has anything whatsoever to do with being "rough/thug men." It's more an inner confidence. Rough/thug is what happens when men are insecure and over compensate.

[Butterscotch]

There's a long way between 'girly' and brutish ape IMO. I've seen plenty of both. There's also a difference between 'metrosexual' and 'cute.'

[BVS]

Originally posted by CTU2fan
Hmm, either I'm out of touch or the author is, or it's a British thing. Girls/women I know definitely prefer more masculine/rough/thug men, whatever you want to call it, over the "meterosexual" type. I think there was & is a certain group of women who like that sensitive guy, but generally I think they like manly men.

Where did it mention meterosexual? Where did it say anything about "sensitive"? Did you read the article?

[yolland]

Originally posted by MrsSpringsteen
This study is obviously focused on the physical.

In the sense that the women (and apparently men as well?...but interestingly, the article kind of brushes over that) were working from photos, yes. But on the other hand, the m.o. was to have them predict personality traits based on facial appearance alone (hair, ears, neck, and obviously 'body' were cropped out), then rank the pictured men for desirability as partners (among other things) based on those predicted personality traits. While that makes for more interesting results than simply asking, e.g., "Which of these faces is most attractive?", in that it gets at underlying assumptions about connections between character and appearance often left unexamined in studies of what people find 'attractive', it also makes me, at least, want a clearer fix on what exactly this continuum of 'masculine'-->'feminine' facial features looks like.

[anitram]

Originally posted by lynnok
Will men be plucking their eyebrows now? Creepy.

Quite frankly I've seen a lot of men who could use it.

[LJT]

There was a similar type of study done, where women who were ovulating were shown pictures of more feminine featured men and more physically masculine men. The same pics were shown when they were not ovulating. They preferred masculine looking men when ovulating and men with feminine features when not

Honestly I don't think there is a great deal of truth in either study. I really do wonder what is the point of such studies at times...do they have any greater application in the world?

I suppose i'm somewhere between a feminine and masculine man. Long hair, and I apparently have very feminine eyes and lips according to some, but I am quite broadshouldered and what not....maybe i'm just well balanced

[yolland]

I remember that earlier study you're referring to...I suppose you could argue that this one actually complements it, in that it seems logical that a woman might in practice take both perceived 'virility' cues and perceived 'good provider' cues into account in making 'mating' decisions, though the significance of the latter might vary more, depending on what kinds of familial structures typify the culture she comes from. Likewise, men might also balance perceived 'fertility' cues off against perceived 'good nurturer' cues. Overdrawn dichotomies like 'Newsflash! Most women don't really prefer hypercompetitive macho studs!' or 'Newsflash! Most men don't really prefer prissy prima donnas!' are kind of no-brainers anyway, and don't really tell you much.

Another question I'd have with the present study is how sweeping the average preference for 'feminine' facial features (again...whatever exactly those look like in real life) was...e.g., were women who preferred an across-the-board 'feminine' face the norm, or did more women in fact prefer a mix of 'feminine' and 'masculine' features, with a cumulative leaning towards 'feminine' ones?