The Attractiveness Bias

Well it is not hard to believe that attractive people are received with greater enthusiasm or positivity than unattractive people.

Attractive people generally get more attention from members of the opposite sex, and even from their mothers. A good looking person is more likely to get hired for a position if all things are equal compared to an unattractive candidate.This may be hard to swallow but it is in fact a result of both biological and environmental factors.

If we look at this from a biological standpoint it makes sense. An attractive person generally exudes good health, strong, balanced features and instinctively we perceive this as being good baby making material.

In environmental terms things vary somewhat between genders and their preferences. Women tend to be attracted to power and wealth and would be more likely to choose a unattractive mate from some one who is wealthy and powerful than some one who is of middle status and good looking. I am sure we can all think of at least one example where this is true.

Men on the other hand almost always prefer the more attractive female regardless of position or wealth.

So let's apply this to design. If you are designing a campaign around photos of people, and need to portray a woman she should be of proper waist to hip ratios and accenting sexual features such as lips, breasts, etc. If the image is of a man, strong features to portray health and power and affectations that represent wealth such as expensive clothes, suits, watches etc.

Reference (Universal Principles of Design - William Lidwell, Kritina Holden, Jill Butler, Rockport Publishing)