641. More About Male Facial Width-To-Height Ratio
When I wrote entry 487, the reported difference between wide-faced and narrow-faced men seemed convincing, as it made me aware of my own spontaneous reaction. I discovered my own tendency to be at least more apprehensive about and less attracted to the wide faced men when looking at pictures on men's profiles.
Pondering over my reasons, I came up with an explanation:
As far as my own observation goes, wide faced men are men with also wide bodies. It seems as if it is a general difference of overall proportions. A wide body means broad shoulders, which usually indicate physical strength.
The stronger a man, the more he is a potential hazard and the less a woman has a chance, should the man be a predator lacking morals or self-control and decide to make her his prey against her will.
Therefore I spontaneously perceive a man's wide face as a warning sign indicating his physical strength. The stronger a man, the more I am scared of him, if and as long as I do not know him well and the longer it takes for me to trust him. This does not mean, that I consciously reject men for being strong or that I allow myself to base decisions upon such a trait. But it is my intuitive spontaneous reaction and I have to be aware to not allow myself to be mislead.
But this subject is controversial:
"There is not significant evidence to support the association between facial shape and aggression in men""The experts based the research on the study of the fWHR -- facial width-to-height ratio -- as a possible predictor of aggressive behaviours in men populations.""males who present higher fWHR values -- wide faces in comparison with their height -- do not have a greater reproductive success or show more violent behaviours. If males displaying higher fWHR scores achieved better fitness values, it would trigger a process of sexual selection focused on fWHR."
"Studies have shown that facial width-to-height ratio (fWHR) is associated with testosterone-related behaviors, which some researchers have linked with aggression. But psychological scientist Eric Hehman of Dartmouth College and colleagues at the University of Delaware speculated that these behaviors may have more to do with social dominance than outright aggression."""You could think about it as a 'side effect' of social dominance -- men with greater fWHR may not care as much about what others think of them.""But if my suspicion has any ground, that wide faces indicate physical strength, then this leads to a different question: Is aggression, competition and dominance a consequence of a man having the physical strength to oppress, subdue and intimidate others, or are aggression and physical strength both connected with a cause like high testosterone?
