Abstract
This study examined the effects of different types of surgical masks and the style of wearing the masks on the wearers’ attractiveness evaluations. In Experiment 1, undergraduates (n = 63) evaluated the attractiveness of four peoples’ photographs wearing three types of surgical masks; pleated surgical masks, planar-shaped masks (similar to those distributed by the Japanese government), and three-dimensional masks. The results indicated that the planar-shaped surgical masks were rated less attractive than pleated or three-dimensional masks. Experiment 2 examined the effects of the mask-wearing style. Undergraduates (n = 20) evaluated the attractiveness of three photographs of two people wearing a pleated surgical mask pulled down to expose the nasal dorsum, the mask pulled down further to reveal the nose fully, or the mask appropriately worn with the nose wholly covered. The results indicated that the higher the nose exposure, the lower the attractiveness rating
