Do Clothing and Facial Expressions Moderate The Relationship Between Personality Traits and Attractiveness Judgments

Physically attractive people are rated more favorably by others and even have higher personal and professional life success. It has been shown that clothing style and smiling influence attractiveness in previous research; but how about our personality traits? Crucially, our personality traits might also influence our judgements about attractiveness. Our personality traits, especially extraversion and agreeableness, may be effective on whom we find attractive and may explain the reason behind it. The present thesis aims to examine whether clothing and the facial expressions of the other person can moderate the relationship between our personality traits and judgements about attractiveness. It also aims to bring insight into when we feel ourselves attractive, and the role of the other person in the interaction. Thirty-one (N = 31) participants were recruited to examine the moderation. Participants were presented with videos of models, in two different conditions for clothing:...Show morePhysically attractive people are rated more favorably by others and even have higher personal and professional life success. It has been shown that clothing style and smiling influence attractiveness in previous research; but how about our personality traits? Crucially, our personality traits might also influence our judgements about attractiveness. Our personality traits, especially extraversion and agreeableness, may be effective on whom we find attractive and may explain the reason behind it. The present thesis aims to examine whether clothing and the facial expressions of the other person can moderate the relationship between our personality traits and judgements about attractiveness. It also aims to bring insight into when we feel ourselves attractive, and the role of the other person in the interaction. Thirty-one (N = 31) participants were recruited to examine the moderation. Participants were presented with videos of models, in two different conditions for clothing: provocatively dressed vs. conservatively and three different conditions for the facial expressions; smile, coy smile vs. neutral expression. Participants were then asked to rate the attractiveness of the person that they saw in the video and how attractive that person would find them in return. They are then asked to fill out questionnaires including the MINI-IPIP to measure extraversion and agreeableness. Moderation analyses showed that neither the clothing type, nor the facial expression of the people they are interacting with did not moderate the relationship between the personality traits and ratings of attractiveness. These findings are explained in the context of moderation models, and future research is discussed.Show less

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Do Clothing and Facial Expressions Moderate The Relationship Between Personality Traits and Attractiveness Judgments