Evolution & Human Behavior
Volume 28, Issue 1 , Pages 18-27, January 2007

Facial appearance affects voting decisions

  • Anthony C. Little

      Affiliations

    • School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
    • School of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. School of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK.
    • ,
  • Robert P. Burriss

      Affiliations

    • School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
    • ,
  • Benedict C. Jones

      Affiliations

    • School of Psychology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
    • ,
  • S. Craig Roberts

      Affiliations

    • School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK

Received 13 October 2005; received in revised form 16 May 2006; accepted 11 September 2006. published online 10 November 2006.

Abstract 

Human groups are unusual among primates in that our leaders are often democratically selected. Faces affect hiring decisions and could influence voting behavior. Here, we show that facial appearance has important effects on choice of leader. We show that differences in facial shape alone between candidates can predict who wins or loses in an election (Study 1) and that changing context from war time to peace time can affect which face receives the most votes (Study 2). Our studies highlight the role of face shape in voting behavior and the role of personal attributions in face perception. We also show that there may be no general characteristics of faces that can win votes, demonstrating that face traits and information about the environment interact in choice of leader.

Keywords: Social cognition, Elections, Leadership, Dominance, Vote, Masculinity/femininity, War time/peace time

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PII: S1090-5138(06)00076-6

doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2006.09.002

Evolution & Human Behavior
Volume 28, Issue 1 , Pages 18-27, January 2007

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