What Women Want;

Exploring the likelihood that attractive women prefer masculine

men.

The following paper outlines research by Docherty et al. which aimed at

the discovery that women will show strong preferences for men with
masculine faces if they perceive themselves to be more attractive than
the average woman. I will also offer a potential way of solving one
remaining question that this study does not answer.

Lara G O'Donoghue; 1866701

Honors 220B Paper 2 | Wednesday 27th October 2021

 Docherty et al. sought to uncover whether a woman’s perception of her own attractiveness

impacts her choice in a mate, in response to other studies in this field with weak results. They

hypothesized that the more attractive a woman perceives herself to be, the stronger her preferences

will be for men with facial masculinity. Their reasoning was that perhaps more attractive women can

minimize potential costs of choosing a mate who will show less investment in the relationship, a

masculine mate, compared to less attractive women. To test their hypothesis, they constructed two

studies. (Docherty, Introduction)

In Study 1, the researchers used images, such as those in figure 1, from Holzleitner et al to

create an attractiveness score for each image to use in their own analysis. 454 heterosexual women,

of an average age of 21, rated themselves as more or less attractive than those images on a scale of 1

(much less attractive) to 7 (much more attractive). (Docherty, 2.1.1.) The women were then shown

10 pairs of faces that were masculinized and feminized and asked to choose the more attractive

image for a short-term relationship e.g., a one-night stand. This process was repeated for 10 more

pairs of images for a long-term relationship e.g., marriage. The researchers then measured the scores

given by the participants, ranging from the most attractive masculinized faces scoring 3.5 and the

most attractive filmized faces scoring a -3.5, as perceived by the participant. Docherty, 2.1.2.)

In Study 2, the researchers used masculinized and feminized images of 20 young adult white

men and 20 young adult white women. 8,972 heterosexual women, of an average age of 23,

rated themselves as more or less attractive than average on a scale of 1 (much less attractive) to 7

(much more attractive), not in response to stimuli. The participants then chose the more attractive

image of each of the 40 pairs according to the same scale set out in study 1, regardless of relationship

length. If the hypothesis is correct, women who view themselves as more attractive than others, or

who have a high level of self-rated attractiveness (SRA), will show stronger preferences for

masculine men and feminized women, as shown in figure 2, than those women who view themselves
as less attractive than others, or who have a low level of SRA with stronger preferences in the short

term, as shown in figure 3. (Docherty, 4.1) If the hypothesis is wrong, there will be no difference in

preferences regardless of how women perceive their attractiveness or length of relationship, as shown

in figure 4 A and B.

Study 1 found that women preferred masculinized versions of men’s faces, and these

preferences were stronger for short-term relationships. This is consistent with the reasoning behind

the hypothesis, as short-term relationships do not carry as much risk regarding investment or

desertion. However, participants perception of attractiveness in response to stimuli did not predict

masculinity preferences. (Figure 5) As seen in Figure 6, Study 2 revealed that masculine male faces

were preferred more than masculine female faces, and that women with higher levels of SRA showed

stronger preferences still for masculinized male faces than their lower SRA counterparts. (Docherty,

3&5) In comparing these results to the predicted results if the hypothesis were correct, they do seem

to somewhat coincide, just to a less dramatic degree. Overall, the results suggest that preferences of

masculine faces do correlate with and are best predicted according to a woman’s SRA.

Given these findings, I am still left with questions about whether this hypothesis would hold

true for men’s preferences for feminized faces, or whether the opinion of others on one’s level of

attractiveness would impact one’s choice in a mate. In order to test my first question, I would repeat

both of the studies of Docherty et al but with male participants and exclusively female images in

Study 1. I hypothesize that men’s SRA will impact their choice in a mate, with those men with a high

SRA preferring feminized female faces. If I am correct, I will see a positive correlation between SRA

level and feminized faces, and an overall preference for feminized faces in both long and short-term

relationships across all other-rated attractiveness levels. If I am incorrect, there will be little to no

difference in preferences for feminized or masculinized female faces across the board.
Graphs and Figures:
Figure. 1: 

“Examples of masculinized (left) and feminized (right) versions of men's faces used to assess
facial masculinity preferences in [Docherty’s] study.” – Source: Docherty et al.

Figure 2:

The predicted relationships between self-rated attractiveness and women's preferences for
masculinity in men's and women's faces (Study 2) if the hypothesis is correct.
Figure 3:

The predicted relationship between facial attractiveness and women's masculinity preferences in
short- and long-term contexts (Study 1) if the hypothesis is correct.
Figure 4:

A:

The predicted relationships between self-rated attractiveness and women's preferences for
masculinity in men's and women's faces (Study 2) if the hypothesis is incorrect.
B:

The predicted relationship between facial attractiveness and women's masculinity preferences in
short- and long-term contexts (Study 1) if the hypothesis is incorrect.
 Figure 5:

“The relationship between facial attractiveness and women's masculinity preferences in

short- and long-term contexts (Study 1).” - Source: Docherty et el.
Figure 6:

“The relationships between self-rated attractiveness and women's preferences for

masculinity in men's and women's faces (Study 2).” – Source: Docherty et al.

Works Cited:
Ciaran Docherty, Anthony J. Lee, Amanda C. Hahn, Lisa M. DeBruine, Benedict C.Jones. (2020) Do

more attractive women show stronger preferences for male facial masculinity? Evolution and Human

Behavior, Volume 41, Issue 4.