European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 19, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Barbara pal Clos teide of Venezuela the morning after she was crowned Mlaka universe. A photo quantifying attractiveness by Daniel Goleman new York times the Beauty of the female face it appears i mathematically , new research is identifying Why the emerging equation can attempt to define what has for so Long been thought of As strictly subjective. In the last two decades psychologists have come to realize that physical attractiveness in males As Well As females carries with it an impressive array of social and psychological benefits from getting More attention from teachers in childhood to earning More Money in adulthood. Researchers Are now attempting to determine precisely what constitutes attractiveness and what makes it is so compelling. While much of this research has thus far focused on the female face psychologists Are now also studying the features that make a Man s face attractive. But in mating a Man s looks matter less than his social status and wealth according to David Buss a psychologist at the University of Michigan. Buss has studied characteristics most commonly sought in a mate by men and women and has studied the role of attractiveness in human evolution. In an article in the american scientist Buss reported that the sexes agree for the most part on what they seek in a mate. In general men and women say they value kindness and intelligence most and agree on the importance of an exciting personality Good health and creativity. For men the physical attractiveness of a partner is significantly More important than it is for women according to Buss. Page 16 the stars and stripes and for women generally a mate s earning capacity is a greater consideration than it is for men. One explanation for these differences in Buss View lies in the evolutionary advantages those preferences hold for each sex. In evolution signs of Beauty in a woman Are cues that she is Young and healthy thus at the Peak of her reproductive ability and therefore desirable according to Buss. These factors were of great importance through most of human history in the past More women died in childbirth than do now. For a Man physical appearance is not As great a signal of his reproductive value however age imposes fewer constraints on a Man s capacity for reproduction. But a Man is in a better position to further the survival chances of his offspring if he has Access to resources or Power and so it has been to women s advantage to seek mates who had these capabilities Buss argues. So there is a selective advantage in evolution for those men who can Best distinguish among women to find a mate who is at her Peak reproductive Powers says Buss. There would be an advantage to women whose physical make up most closely resembled the signs by which men recognized a woman s health and  the attractive female face is just such a sign according to research reported recently in the journal of personality and social psychology by Michael Cunningham a psychologist at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. In a series of experiments Cunningham asked 150 White male american College students to rate the attractiveness and social attributes of 50 women from pictures of their faces. Twenty seven of the women were finalists in the miss universe contest. Though most of the women were White seven were Black and tuesday. August 19, 1986 s Xii Mensio Nsnan proportions of what was regarded As attractive emerged with remarkable consistency and precision from Cunningham s research. Elements of the perceived Ideal of the attractive female face included Eye Width that is three tenths the Width of the lace at the eyes level chm length one fifth he height of the face distance from the Center of the Eye to the Bottom of the Eyebrow one tenth the height of the face the height of the visible eyeball one fourteenth the height of the face the Width of the Pup i. One fourteenth the distance Between the cheekbones and the total area for the nose less than 5 percen. Of the area of the  s data describe an Ideal not an actual face nor can they be regarded As anything suggesting absolute Beauty rather they Are measures of a developed Standard a Way to describe the images that a culture in this Case the american culture defines As attractive. Very Small differences in these ratios made a Large difference for attractiveness. For example the Ideal Mouth Cunningham found was half or 50 percent the Width of the face at Mouth level. I that percentage varied by As Little at 10 Points his research subjects found the face much less attractive. Of course a woman s personality and intelligence May matter to an individual Man far More than her face in whether he will find her attractive. Moreover any Given Man May be drawn to a particular feature dimples and freckles say or a Strong classical nose that the Ideal lacks. But the Cunningham research indicates there is Strong agreement on what constitutes facial attractiveness though the specifics of the Ideal May vary from culture to culture. Cunningham believes his research holds clues to just Why the specific facial patterns of female Beauty a identified hold such social and psychological Power. The Large eyes along with a Small Chin and nose he says Are facial features that typify a Newborn. The High wide cheekbone and narrow Cheeks though Are signs that a woman has reached puberty. And the High eyebrows dilated pupils and wide smile Are All signals of positive emotions interest excitement and sociability. The infant like features draw out in them the same car taking response a baby would they make a woman seem cute and adorable said Cunningham. But the signs of maturity signal that a woman has reached childbearing years which adds a sexual dimension. And the sociable emotions signal personality traits that people Are drawn  the sum total of the features signify someone who is slightly Young and helpless though sexually mature and Friendly Cunningham added. And men find that combination  research continues to show that being attractive carries a pronounced psychological advantage in life that a powerful stereotype applied to attractive people equates their Beauty with goodness. Most people assume that Good looking men and women have nearly All the positive traits according to Elaine Hatfield. She is a psychologist at the University of Hawaii who has reviewed the research on the social psychology of attractiveness in her Book Mirror mirror.", published recently by the state University of new York press. Other people for example tend to assume that Beautiful women and handsome men Are warm sensitive kind interesting poised sociable and outgoing and will have Good jobs and fulfilling lives. These social perceptions Are one of the benefits of cosmetic facial surgery according to judgments made of photographs of men and women before and after their surgery. Those who underwent the surgery were seen by others afterwards As More self assertive intelligent likable and Able to succeed than they were before the surgery according to research reported in the journal plastic and reconstructive surgery. The positive treatment of those with an attractive face begins from infancy with parents tending to give More attention to cuter babies and continues through life. The teachers of attractive children tend to assume they Are More intelligent and popular than their Peers such expectations psychologists believe become part of a self fulfilling prophecy in which the positive expectations Lead others to treat attractive people More positively which in turn helps them turn out Well whatever the reason Good looking people have been found on average to end up in jobs with higher pay and prestige than do their less attractive competitor sin one study girls in High school were rated for attractiveness and 15 years later the More attractive women were found to be in families with significantly higher net income than were their less attractive classmates