Effect of facial attractiveness on clothing attractiveness ratings by gender

Abstract

Faces and clothing are clues to interpersonal perception. However, it is not known whether perceptions of faces and clothing are interacting with each other. We examined the effects of facial attractiveness on subjective ratings of clothing attractiveness. Participants were shown pictures of a person wearing a T-shirt in which the faces and shirt designs were manipulated. The faces were either male or female, attractive or unattractive. Participants were instructed to rate the attractiveness of the shirts, not the faces. Nevertheless, attractive female faces increased shirt attractiveness ratings, irrespective of the participant’s gender. Attractive male faces only slightly increased shirt attractiveness ratings. Gender differences and individual variability in visual attention were not responsible for these effects. The current results more likely reflect social or cultural factors, such as the higher priority placed on female facial attractiveness than male facial attractiveness in today’s society.