Sex Differences, Dominance, and Physical Attractiveness in the Use of Nonverbal Emblems

Abstract

40 male and 40 female subjects were selected according to high and low levels of dominance and physical attractiveness. Each subject was assigned to a male or female interviewer who verbally administered a 3-min. biographical questionnaire while an observer made a frequency count of the nonverbal emblems used by the subjects. In general, female subjects expressed more emblems than males and subjects of high dominance expressed more emblems than low dominant subjects. Findings were qualified by the following: highly attractive women used more emblems than did women of low attractiveness or men, use of emblems did not differ as a function of attractiveness for men, in same-sex dyads use of emblems did not differ as a function of dominance but in cross-sex dyads highly dominant men and women showed more use than did men and women low in dominance.