Abstract
Facial perception plays a key role in various social interactions, including formidability assessments. People make relatively accurate inferences about men's physical strength, aggressiveness, and success in physical confrontations based on facial cues. The physical factors related to the perception of fighting ability and their relative contribution have not been investigated yet, since most existing studies employed only a limited number of threat potential measures or proxies. In the present study, we collected data from Czech Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters regarding their fighting success and physical performance in order to test physical predictors of perceived fighting ability made on the basis of high-fidelity facial photographs. We have also explored the relationship between perceived and actual fighting ability. We created standardized 360° photographs of 44 MMA fighters which were assessed on their perceived fighting ability by 94 raters (46 males). Further, we obtained data regarding their physical characteristics (e.g., age, height, body composition) and performance (MMA score, isometric strength, anaerobic performance, lung capacity). In contrast to previous studies, we did not find any significant links between the actual and the perceived fighting ability. The results of a multiple regression analysis have, however, shown that heavier fighters and those with higher anaerobic performance were judged as more successful. Our results suggest that certain physical performance-related characteristics are mirrored in individuals' faces but assessments of fighting success based on facial cues are not congruent with actual fighting performance.
Highlights
Male intra-sexual competition is considered an important factor of selective pressure (Puts, 2010; Trebický et al, 2012; Hill et al, 2013; Sell et al, 2017), because it is associated with access to resources via rise in social hierarchy and with broader mating opportunities
We have found a high correlation between fighting ability ratings assigned by men and women (r = 0.972, 95% CI [0.95, 0.985], p < 0.001), which is why we decided to analyze the ratings of both sexes together
A multiple linear regression analysis was run to predict perceived fighting ability whereby age, weight, Isometric strength, Lung capacity, and anaerobic capacity (AC) components were all treated as independent predictors
Summary
Male intra-sexual competition is considered an important factor of selective pressure (Puts, 2010; Trebický et al, 2012; Hill et al, 2013; Sell et al, 2017), because it is associated with access to resources via rise in social hierarchy and with broader mating opportunities. Evidence from various cultures (e.g., von Rueden et al, 2008) and ancestral societies (Walker, 2001) suggests that incidence of physical confrontations in humans is comparable to non-human species (Ellis, 1995). Benefits that can be gained in such confrontations must be, always weighed against potential costs, which may include injuries or even death. Decision whether to flee or fight is frequently taken before an actual physical confrontation takes place, which means that one of the opponents often surrenders. Predictors of Perceived Fighting Ability without a fight (Sell et al, 2012). Individuals who are good at assessing their chances to win are likely to gain a selective advantage. We may expect that perceptual and/or cognitive adaptations for the assessments of one’s own and others’ fighting ability have evolved
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