Event-related potentials (ERPs) to gender differences in encoding processing for female facial attractiveness

Abstract

Facial attractiveness is of high importance for human interaction and social behavior. This study investigated gender differences on judgment processing for attractive and unattractive female faces. Behavioral data and ERPs were recorded in 21 males and 17 females during an encoding task. The behavioral data results showed that both males and females have significantly higher accuracy rate for attractive faces than for unattractive faces, but male reacted faster to unattractive faces. Gender differences on ERPs showed that the attractive faces elicited larger early components in males than in females. The attractive faces elicited larger components on N170 than unattractive faces at temporal and occipital sites for female. For males, attractive faces elicited larger early components on P170 and N220 and more negative amplitude (300–500ms) than unattractive faces at anterior locations, more negative amplitude (200–300ms) at temporal and occipital sites, and more late positive components (LPC) at central-parietal locations. The gender differences of encoding processing indicated that female facial attractiveness influenced males much more than females, and it may represent reproductive fitness and mating values for males.