February 7th, 2011 – Is it or is it not in the eye of the beholder?

"It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances.
The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible".
Oscar Wilde.

I cut my hair. It wasn't just a trim, it was a pretty dramatic cut. I went from long hair to short hair in less than 15 minutes. Why do I explain it in such detail? So that my astonishment is clear. NOT ONE of my guy friends noticed the change! Regardless, I love it. I loved my long hair too, but it's been too long (pun intended, insert the victorious percussion sound here).

This made me think. I know from experience that a lot of things change after you get to know a person. If you like them, you stop noticing their "ugly" traits and start attributing various sorts of beauty to them instead, all of a sudden, they become more attractive. If you don't like them, the opposite process occurs, and whatever initial appeal may have existed quickly evaporates. Speaking of attractiveness, it turns out that you can… measure it. My day is full of surprises.

The attempts at scientific research of physical attractiveness started in mid-1960s. Edward Lee Thorndike (American psychologist and educator) asserts, "If something exists, it exists in some amount; if it exists in some amount, it can be measured." Unexpected. There's a whole research methodology that is dedicated to physical attractiveness. It's called the "Truth of Consensus". Gestalt perspectives (professing that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts) implemented through this truth of consensus method have, apparently, proven to be successful in the research of the physical attractiveness phenomenon. Starting from here, everything is disappointingly expected, although still pretty interesting:

• Looks are ranked as significantly more seductive than money, power and fame.
  
• Healthy and young appearance is considered the epitome of attractiveness.
  
• Face seems to be more important than the body components.
  
• Curiously, the order of the five most important attractiveness determinants varies depending on the evaluation perspective (according to some research done in the 70s-80s):
  
  • For females judged by self, the order is:
    
    • Weight
      
    • Face
      
    • Height
      
    • Legs
      
    • Extremities
      
  • Females judged by females:
    
    • Weight
      
    • Face
      
    • Complexion
      
    • Legs / Height
      
    • Hands
      
  • Females judged by men:
    
    • Weight
      
    • Face
      
    • Height
      
    • Hands
      
    • Figure
      
  • For males judged by self:
    
    • Face
      
    • Legs
      
    • Weight
      
    • Torso
      
    • Voice / Hair
      
  • Males judged by males:
    
    • Face
      
    • Weight
      
    • Legs
      
    • Shoulders / Arms
      
    • Complexion / Hands
      
  • Males judged by females:
    
    • Face
      
    • Weight
      
    • Hair
      
    • Body / Profile
      
    • Shoulders / Arms
      
• And last but not least, familiarity – the research shows – significantly affects physical attractiveness…
  

Which brings me to my original issue. Familiarity expectedly skews your opinion about your friend's looks, but I had absolutely no idea that you may NOT notice the appearance! And what that really means is you see the person with your mind's eye, not with your physical two eyes. It could be true just about appearances, but what if it also applies to the character? What if we see our friends the way we imagine them and not the way they really are?

P.S. If you want to dig into this fascinating research, follow this link.