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Facial Features, Attractiveness, Conservatism, and Femininity of U.S. Congresswomen
Gabriela R. Brito
Jamie N. Glass
Terry F. Pettijohn II
Coastal Carolina University
Literature Review
Beauty at the Ballot Box (White, Kenrick, & Neuberg, 2013)
Desirability of Traits
Femininity Sex-Typical Features (Carpinella & Johnson, 2013)
Attractiveness Enhances perceptions of female candidates’ femininity
(Sigelman, Sigelman, & Fowler, 1987) Attractiveness Halo (Verhulst, Lodge, & Lavine, 2010)
Conservatism Image by conservatism (Rosenberg, Bohan, McCafferty,
& Harris, 1986)
Study 1: Facialmetric Data
Hypothesis U.S. congresswomen affiliated with the Republican
Party would have larger eyes and smaller chins, which are traits associated with physical attractiveness and beauty, than U.S. congresswomen affiliated with the Democratic Party.
Study 1: Facialmetric Data
Procedure: Identified and located complete, front, facial view
photographs of the 2013 U.S. elected congresswomen Facialmetric assessments for each photograph
Facial width to height ratio (fWHR)
Supporting previous research Berry & McArthur, 1985 Keating, Mazur, & Segall, 1981 Zebrowitz, 1997 Zebrowitz & Montepare, 1992
Republicans
Democrats
Deb Fischer (NB)Jaime Herrera Beutler (WA) Susan Brooks
(ID)Martha Roby (AL)
Donna Edwards (MD)Debbie Wasserman
Schultz (FL) Grace Meng (NY) Lois Capps (CA)
"Their ideas of beauty are, on the whole, the same as
ours": Consistency and variability in the cross-
cultural perception of female physical attractiveness
(Cunningham et al., 1995).
Study 1: Facialmetric Data
Results Republicans (M=55.22, SD=9.36) in office were
significantly younger than Democrats (M=62.94, SD=10.41), t (99) = 3.20, p=.002
No significant differences in facial features (all ps > .20, except nose size)
Eye area, eye width, eye length Chin area, chin length, chin width Cheekbone prominence, facial narrowness, cheek thinness
Only significant differences in nose length (p=.04) and nose tip width (p=.01)
Democrats had larger noses Nose width is traditionally an African American trait (Blair,
Judd, & Chapleau, 2004) Greater racial and ethnic variation within the Democratic
party
Study 2: Participant Ratings
Hypothesis U.S. congresswomen affiliated with the Republican
Party would be rated more attractive, conservative, and feminine than U.S. congresswomen affiliated with the Democratic Party.
Study 2: Participant Ratings
n = 158 participants rated 101 congresswomen
70% Female, 30% Male
50% Freshmen
40% Moderate (Political Ideology)
70% Caucasian
Method Online survey
Study 2: Participant Ratings
Results Consistent with predictions and past research findings,
compared to Democratic congresswomen, Republican congresswomen were rated as more
Physically attractive Conservative Feminine
Physical attractiveness was correlated with femininity r (99) = .75, p < .05
Attractive Conservative Feminine
REPUBLICAN
DEMOCRAT
Kristi Noem (SD) Kristi Noem (SD)Kelly Ayotte (NH)
Rosa DeLauro (CT)
Connie Brown (FL)
Barbara Mikulski (CA)
Discussion
Study 1: Facialmetric Data
With the measurements we could not quantify differences between Democratic and Republican congresswomen
Study 2: Participant Ratings
Consistent with previous literature, Republican congresswomen were rated more attractive, conservative, and feminine than Democratic congresswomen
IMPLICATIONS
If you are considering running for a political party, then keep in mind image matters
Stereotypes within political parties
Almost all participants could not recognize the congresswomen
Political ideology
LIMITATIONS
Our sample may not be a good representation of the population in the U.S.
More Democrats than Republicans in the sample
“Style shapes image and
image affects
the vote” (Rosenberg et al.,
1986)
Future Directions
Ask participants whether or not they would vote for the candidate
Look at male congressional candidates and see if voter preferences mimic a similar pattern
Republican congressmen would be rated more attractive, conservative, and masculine than Democratic congressmen
Look at candidates in the context of presidential election