Effect of group status on physical attractiveness preferences--from the Japanese case to a general cognitive perspective.
The development of intergroup physical attractiveness preferences and the effect of national status on physical attractiveness judgments were examined. Study 1 reveals that ranking of national status and physical attractiveness are correlated. Study 2 shows that national labels attached to persons affect the ratings of their attractiveness. The results of Study 3 demonstrate that people tend to connect attractive people with nations of higher status. The author suggests that perceptions of national attractiveness derive from a categorization process linking status and appearance, as well as from indigenous dispositions toward certain physical features related to the preference of an ingroup mate.
Kowner
R
R
Center for East Asian Studies, Stanford University, USA. kowner@leland.stanford.edu
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001504:Beauty; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003071:Cognition; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage; D012933:Social Identification; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors