Teddies Talks Biology Edition 5 - June 2018

The Biology Behind Attraction Grace Flynn - 4th Form

Why are certain physical aƩributes appealing to us? Why will men usually prefer women with longer, thick hair to women with shorter, thinner hair? Why do most women prefer men with beards or stubble to men with clean-shaven faces?

be a part of her that want him to win. This is not because she wants to show off that her man is stronger, it is actually because by him winning, he is showing her that he is a suitable mate that will be able to physically protect her in dangerous situa- Ɵons. This notably is a primiƟve insƟnct, as in earli- er ages, the man would have protected the family from danger while the woman would raise the chil- dren. Why do we find symmetric faces more aƩracƟve than asymmetric faces? The main reason for this also dates back to prehis- toric insƟncts in humans. When choosing a mate, we will subconsciously look for signs of health in their body frame and face. The reason for us doing this is quite simple; our brains have evolved to cor- relate healthy faces and frames with strong ge- neƟcs. We want our offspring to survive, and so even nowadays, men and women will pick out more average, measured faces from the crowds. While it is true that certain enhancement trends are also aƩracƟve, we insƟncƟvely look for more median signs of health in our partners. So, while having high -set cheekbones and a slim figure is desirable, actu- ally having an average weight and facial build should be just as much so.

The answer is in fact, much more primiƟve than it is indoctrinated. We like to believe that physical ideal- isms are being force-fed down our throats through Hollywood and social media broadcasƟng certain ‘perfect’ body types, but actually, the root of our physical idealisms comes from a far deeper place

embedded in the brain. It is a psychological fact of life, that when it comes to finding a mate, humans have primiƟve insƟncts that will undeni- ably emerge. For exam- ple, women will want their man to win a fight. Even if the woman her- self is against physical violence, there will sƟll

Issue 5 | Teddies Talks Biology

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