Physical Appearance, Attractiveness and Relationships: Is the Display Versus Avoidance of the Color Red a Strategic Mating Signal?
- The present article focuses on the role of situational factors - such as the color red - and their influence on what humans notice in others. Humans form impressions of others instantly. These impressions are predominantly based on physical appearance, which is part due to a person’s search for indicators of a potential partner’s fitness. Attractive individuals are associated with all sorts of positive qualities, whereas their less attractive counterparts are less favorably depicted. This perception process of physical attractiveness is associated with health in male and female faces, and from an evolutionary point of view, serves the survival and the reproductive success of the perceiver. The meaning of the color red for approach and avoidance behavior is demonstrated in a recent study, which shows that women’s use (or avoidance) of red clothing, accessories, and make-up may serve as a subtle and strategic indicator of (missing) sexual interest.
Author details: | Daniel Niesta KayersORCiD, Sascha SchwarzORCiDGND |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.4172/2161-0487.1000293 |
ISSN: | 2161-0487 |
Title of parent work (English): | Journal of Psychology & Psychotherapy |
Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Publication year: | 2017 |
Release date: | 2019/03/06 |
Tag: | Approach and avoidance behavior; Attraction; Attractiveness; Human sexuality; Red |
Volume: | 7 |
Issue: | 2 |
Number of pages: | 4 |
Organizational units: | Humanwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Strukturbereich Kognitionswissenschaften / Department Psychologie |
DDC classification: | 1 Philosophie und Psychologie / 15 Psychologie / 150 Psychologie |
Institution name at the time of the publication: | Humanwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Psychologie |