The Effects of Hairstyle on Perceived Attractiveness

Physical characteristics from asymmetry to weight to hair color all have an impact on people 's perception of attractiveness (Clayson & Klassen, 1989; Rhodes, Geddes, Jeffery, Dziurawiec, & Clark, 2002). Previous studies have shown that obese people are viewed with a negative stereotype and as more unattractive with an absence of personal responsibility (Clayson & Klassen, 1989). Levels of attractiveness have also been studied in several terms of facial characteristics.
Some researchers questioned whether attractiveness is a cultural phenomenon or a part of biological heritage (Rhodes, Geddes, Jeffery, Dziurawiec, & Clark, 2002). Their main focus was on infants and their ability to discriminate between the degree of "averageness" and asymmetry. The infants ' looking behavior showed that they were able to distinguish differences amongst pairs of faces in the experiment. The results astonished the researchers because infants can acknowledge the difference between unattractive and attractive people much like adults can, which implies that part of attraction is biological. Another aspect of attractiveness that has been examined is the halo effect associated with physical attractiveness: "what is beautiful is good" (Dion, Berscheid, & Waltser, 1974). However, other researchers have contradicted this theory and believe that it is overgeneralized (Timmerman & Hewitt, 1980). According to the work of Timmerman and Hewitt, attractive models are more likeable, but mixed ratings are received in terms of personality traits. Although their results were in contradiction with previous studies, they conclude it to be as a result in differing dependent variables. Therefore, the halo effect associated with physical attractiveness exists with ratings of sociability. To many people 's surprise, researchers discovered that average is more attractive (Rhodes et al., 2005). Rhodes states that "average faces cannot be attributed to blending artifacts, symmetry, or pleasant

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