The pulling power of big beards

19 September 2016 - 09:01 By ©The Daily Telegraph
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A man with a beard. File photo.
A man with a beard. File photo.
Image: Gallo Images/Thinkstock

Men with full beards are viewed as being more attractive for long-term relationships, according to a study published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology.

Men with stubble, on the other hand, are viewed as a better bet among women looking for a short-term fling.

Researchers at the University of Queensland in Australia asked 8520 women to look at photos of men, and provide ratings for physical attractiveness.

The images were manipulated so the men ran the full gamut of facial hair-length, from clean-shaven to full beard. Features such as cheekbones were also manipulated to make their appearance more or less masculine.

Participants in the study rated feminine faces as being less attractive than unmanipulated faces when both were clean-shaven. Faces with extremely masculine or extremely feminine features were judged as being the least attractive.

The faces with stubble were rated most attractive overall, particularly for short-term flings, while fully bearded faces were judged as more attractive for long-term relationships.

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