Attractive female faces make men behave more honestly, a study shows.
Researchers found that male participants in an experiment were less likely to cheat when shown a photo of a beautiful woman.
However, female participants behaved less honestly when shown the same image.
A total of 110 men received a dice and a questionnaire with a picture of a woman on it.
Half were shown an attractive woman’s face, while the others saw someone who looked simple.
Researchers found that male participants in an experiment were less likely to cheat when shown a photo of a beautiful woman. However, female participants behaved less honestly when shown the same image (stock image)
A total of 110 men received a dice and a questionnaire with a picture of a woman on it. Professor Zeev Shtudiner, who led the study, said: ‘The men who rolled the dice in the presence of a very attractive photo cheated less, if at all’ (stock image)
They were told that the woman in the photo was leading the investigation and would give them some money, but that they had to give some back depending on the number they rolled on their dice.
The researchers didn’t check the dice, so the men could lie and say they rolled a lower number, which would give them less money back. The average role for men with the beautiful woman was 3.14. And the average for those who saw the other photo was 1.98.
Professor Zeev Shtudiner, who led the research at Ariel University in Israel, said: ‘The men who rolled the dice in the presence of a very attractive photo cheated less, if at all.’
He said the results align with the beauty premium theory, which makes positive moral judgments about beautiful people. This made the men who studied the mirror a perceived trait of honesty.
But when the researchers studied female behavior, they found that participants were less honest when shown a beautiful woman.
It was suggested that this was because women were more likely to determine their worth based on how they stack up against others.