The Female Nude in Rubens: Disconfirmatory Evidence of the Waist-to-Hip Ratio Hypothesis of Female Physical Attractiveness

Abstract

Strong versions of evolutionary psychologists have proposed that men possess perceptual mechanisms that engender a preference for women with low waist-to-hip ratios (WHR), typically 0.70, as this is considered maximally healthy and fertile. This has taken to be culturally and temporally invariant. In the present study, two semi-expert and two non-expert judges made measurements of the WHR of nude females in paintings by Pieter Pauwel Rubens. The results showed that the mean WHR of Rubens' women was 0.776, significantly higher than the reported preference for WHRs of 0.70. Possible non-adaptive explanations for this result are proposed in conclusion. / SWAMI, GRAY AND FURNHAM

Baby got Back: Some Brief Observations on Obesity in Ancient Female Figurines: Limited Support for Waist to Hip Ratio Constant as a Signal of Fertility

“…For example, some have argued that a link can be made between female sexual dysfunctionspecifically female inorgasmia during intercourse--and obesity (4). However, this latter finding seems to stand somewhat in contradiction to the not uncommon modern fetish for larger females (5). If such a sexual preference does not involve female orgasm then this would stand in need of explanation.…”

“…It has been found that, with few exceptions, there is a robust modern crosscultural preference for a waist to hip ratio of 0.7 in human females (3). Male preferences for relative obesity have been found to possibly vary according to conditions of food scarcityperhaps mediated by SES which is itself an index of cues to resource allocation (5,18).…”

Pathogen disgust sensitivity and resource scarcity are associated with mate preference for different waist-to-hip ratios, shoulder-to-hip ratios, and body mass index

“…more preferred in the past compared to contemporary preferences (Lamb, Jackson, Cassiday, & Priest, 1993;Swami, Gray, & Furnham, 2007). This may suggest that there are costs associated with choosing a partner with a low WHR, or that women with higher WHR may confer other benefits that are more advantageous in non-Western cultures.…”

Sexual selection and the role of variation in women's mate preference for masculine traits

“…These findings could also explain inconsistencies within the literature regarding historical and cultural variation on men's WHR preferences. Fluctuations in environmental conditions (e.g., pathogen prevalence, resource scarcity, or other factors not investigated here) shift the optimum WHR that is most evolutionarily beneficial, which contribute to findings of higher WHR being preferred in non-Western participants (Sugiyama, 2004;Swami et al, 2009;Wetsman & Marlowe, 1999;Yu & Shepard, 1998) or in the past (Lamb et al, 1993;Swami et al, 2007), presumably because these environments were more resource-scarce compared to modern WEIRD societies.…”

“…While the majority of studies have been conducted with participants from modern Western societies, participants from non-Western backgrounds have shown a preference for higher WHR compared to Western participants (Sugiyama, 2004;Swami, Jones, Einon, & Furnham, 2009;Tovee, Swami, Furnham, & Mangalparsad, 2006;Wetsman & Marlowe, 1999;Yu & Shepard, 1998). Historical evidence also shows that WHR preferences change across time, with higher WHR more preferred in the past compared to contemporary preferences (Lamb, Jackson, Cassiday, & Priest, 1993;Swami, Gray, & Furnham, 2007).…”