The larger the width-to-height ratio of a man's face, the more likely he is to have an aggressive personality, according to a Canadian study.
Img: Ice Hockey stoush. Credit: sandranahdar/flickr
Scientists at Brock University in Ontario made the original discovery in a study of students playing computer games and later confirmed their findings in male ice hockey players.
The researchers were astonished to find the study could predict behaviour in the real world and said their findings linked the fact that men's faces tend to be wider than womens because of the influence of testosterone. Therefore the wider the man's face, the more it can be linked to aggressive behaviour, said the team. However, the team found no such correlation in women.
Cheryl McCormick and Justin Carre from Brock University, who led the study, said the findings may suggest the face was evolved to warn others of aggressiveness.
"Competitors may have used this cue, likely on a subconscious level, to decide whether or not to take an opponent on," McCormick told LiveScience.
The also team said usual signals of aggression were found in the lowering of the brow and the raising of the upper lip, gestures which tend to squash the face making it look wider.
The research, findings of which are published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences, studied 90 ice hockey players and found the width-to-height ratio of the player's face was statistically linked to the number of penalties each player drew in a game for aggressive offences including slashing, elbowing, checking from behind, fighting and more.
"The facial structure of a man provides an indication of how aggressive he will be in a competitive situation," commented Prof. McCormick. Therefore, we are able to predict, with some accuracy, the behaviour of men on the basis of their facial features."
"If men's faces are providing cues as to their potential for aggression, then likely people are probably picking up on this cue, although likely on a subconscious level," she added.
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