Facial attractiveness - Visual impact of symmetry increases significantly towards the midline

被引:98
作者
Springer, Ingo N.
Wannicke, Bjorn
Warnke, Patrick H.
Zernial, Oliver
Wiltfang, Jorg
Russo, Paul A. J.
Terheyden, Hendrik
Reinhardt, Andreas
Wolfart, Stefan
机构
[1] Univ Kiel, Dept Oral & Maxillofacial & Facial Plast Surg, D-24105 Kiel, Germany
[2] Univ Kiel, Dept Conservat Dent & Periodontol, Kiel, Germany
[3] Univ Kiel, Dept Prosthodont Propaedeut & Dent Mat, Kiel, Germany
[4] Univ Sydney, Royal N Shore Hosp, St Leonards, NSW 2065, Australia
关键词
face; attractiveness; symmetry; asymmetry; beauty;
D O I
10.1097/01.sap.0000252041.66540.ec
中图分类号
R61 [外科手术学];
学科分类号
摘要
Symmetry is thought to be a major prerequisite for an attractive face. Many faces are not symmetric, yet are still regarded as beautiful. What role, then, does asymmetry play in the perception of beauty? We studied the assessment of computer-manipulated images by independent judges (n = 200-250): part A: nevi located at different positions; part B: standardized changes of the orbital region. The results showed that slight lateral orbital and facial asymmetry does not impair attractiveness at all and that asymmetries close to the midline are significantly less attractive than those affecting the lateral aspect of the face (P < 0.001). A single nevus which is located laterally on the face is significantly more attractive than a nevus close to the midline (P < 0.001). Faces with a completely symmetric bilateral pair of nevi in the same lateral positions (perceived as attractive when alone), received the worst ratings (P < 0.001). Symmetry is a characteristic of the attractive face, but there are exceptions to the rule. Under certain conditions symmetry can be completely unattractive. The visual impact of symmetry on the perception of beauty increases significantly when approaching the midline.
引用
收藏
页码:156 / 162
页数:7
相关论文
共 35 条
[1]  
BARTLETT SP, 1991, CLIN PLAST SURG, V18, P1
[2]   RETRACTED: Dance reveals symmetry especially in young men (Retracted article. See vol. 504, pg. 470, 2013) [J].
Brown, WM ;
Cronk, L ;
Grochow, K ;
Jacobson, A ;
Liu, CK ;
Popovic, Z ;
Trivers, R .
NATURE, 2005, 438 (7071) :1148-1150
[3]   Strategies for a successful corrective Asian blepharoplasty after previously failed revisions [J].
Chen, SHT ;
Mardini, S ;
Chen, HC ;
Chen, LMJ ;
Cheng, MH ;
Chen, YR ;
Wei, FC ;
Weng, CJ .
PLASTIC AND RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY, 2004, 114 (05) :1270-1277
[4]   A comparison of temporalis transfer and free latissimus dorsi transfer in lower facial reanimation following unilateral longstanding facial palsy [J].
Cuccia, G ;
Shelley, O ;
d'Alcontres, FS ;
Soutar, DS ;
Camilleri, IG .
ANNALS OF PLASTIC SURGERY, 2005, 54 (01) :66-70
[5]   SYMMETRY, BEAUTY AND EVOLUTION [J].
ENQUIST, M ;
ARAK, A .
NATURE, 1994, 372 (6502) :169-172
[6]   FEMALE PREFERENCE FOR SYMMETRICAL MALES AS A BY-PRODUCT OF SELECTION FOR MATE RECOGNITION [J].
JOHNSTONE, RA .
NATURE, 1994, 372 (6502) :172-175
[7]  
Kaufman AJ, 2005, DERMATOL SURG, V31, P1704
[8]  
Koeller DM., 1976, KLINISCHE SELBSTBEUR
[9]   ATTRACTIVE FACES ARE ONLY AVERAGE [J].
LANGLOIS, JH ;
ROGGMAN, LA .
PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE, 1990, 1 (02) :115-121
[10]   Maxims or myths of beauty? A meta-analytic and theoretical review [J].
Langlois, JH ;
Kalakanis, L ;
Rubenstein, AJ ;
Larson, A ;
Hallam, M ;
Smoot, M .
PSYCHOLOGICAL BULLETIN, 2000, 126 (03) :390-423