Abstract
Evolutionary psychology suggests that a woman’s sexual attractiveness might be based on cues of reproductive potential. It has been proposed that a major determinant of physical attractiveness is the ratio between her waist and hip measurements (the waist-to-hip ratio, or WHR): for example, a woman with a curvaceous body and a WHR of 0.7 is considered to be optimally attractive, presumably because this WHR is the result of a fat distribution that maximizes reproductive potential. It follows that the preference for a curvaceous body shape in women should be universal among men and not be culturally based, because natural selection presumably favours cues indicative of the most fertile body shape.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 215-216 |
Number of pages | 2 |
Journal | Nature |
Volume | 399 |
Issue number | 6733 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 20 May 1999 |
Externally published | Yes |