Symmetrical decorations enhance the attractiveness of faces and abstract designs

Abstract

In humans and several other species, face and body symmetry have been found to enhance physical attractiveness. A proposed explanation is that symmetry is a phenotypic indicator of biological fitness. Throughout the world, symmetrical designs also are a common feature in face and body painting and the decorative arts. The implication is that symmetrical designs might provide an additional way to enhance physical attractiveness. To find out, we conducted three experiments, two with human faces and one with abstract or nonrepresentational designs. In Experiments 1 and 2, we showed undergraduate students photographs of pairs of faces and instructed them to choose the more attractive face in each pair. The photographs were of physically symmetrical and asymmetrical faces (as indexed by facial features) that had been decorated with either symmetrical or asymmetrical designs of the kind used in many preindustrial societies. As indexed by the number of times they were chosen, symmetrical faces were judged to be more attractive than asymmetrical faces; adding asymmetrical designs to symmetrical faces decreased their attractiveness; and adding symmetrical designs to asymmetrical faces increased their attractiveness. In Experiment 3, undergraduates made similar choices from pairs of abstract designs taken from several cultures and modified in shape, coloration, and orientation of design features. Symmetrical designs again were judged to be more attractive, with shape and coloration playing the more important roles. We interpret the results as suggesting that the same mechanisms underlying the judgment of physical attractiveness also underlie cultural practices of face painting and abstract art.