Modeling individual preferences reveals that face beauty is not universally perceived across cultures.

ABSTRACT: Facial attractiveness confers considerable advantages in social interactions,^1,2 with preferences likely reflecting psychobiological mechanisms shaped by natural selection. Theories of universal beauty propose that attractive faces comprise features that are closer to the population average³ while optimizing sexual dimorphism.⁴ However, emerging evidence questions this model as an accurate representation of facial attractiveness,^5-7 including representing the diversity of beauty preferences within and across cultures.^8-12 Here, we demonstrate that Western Europeans (WEs) and East Asians (EAs) evaluate facial beauty using culture-specific features, contradicting theories of universality. With a data-driven method,

SUBMITTER: Zhan J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8162177 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature