Men have long been accused of judging women solely by their appearance. However, research has shown that even the most ordinary-looking woman can trigger male hormones.
A study involving a group of male college students aged 21 to 25 found that testosterone levels rose at the same level whether a man was talking to an attractive young woman or to a woman he was not particularly attracted to.
The experiment participants found that spending just five minutes in a room with a stranger, whom not all young men found equally attractive, was enough to increase their testosterone levels by an average of 8%. The study's authors believe that testosterone levels increase automatically and may be an unconscious response to the presence of a female representative.
As the Daily Telegraph reports, increased testosterone levels can also lead to more visible behavioral side effects. Specifically, men begin to straighten their shoulders, stand up straighter, gesticulate actively, and even, in some cases, flare their nostrils.
Apparently, scientists say, elevated levels of the hormone also encourage men to tell women lies about their work, successful career, education, and huge salary.
The young people participating in the experiment were not informed of its purpose. Beforehand, saliva samples were taken to determine their current hormone levels. Afterward, the participant was escorted to another room where they were asked to solve a Sudoku crossword puzzle. But the Sudoku puzzle was merely a pretext for what happened next.
Following the subject, the experiment's organizers brought another unknown participant, either male or female, into the same room. If it was a female, their appearance matched the average standard of female attractiveness. According to the story, the newcomers were also tasked with solving a puzzle, but the organizers “mistakenly” brought them the wrong answers and left the room to correct the error. As a result, the subject and the “decoy” were left alone for five minutes. Afterward, the examiner brought the “correct” crossword puzzle and left the room with the “decoy,” leaving the subject alone for 15 minutes to complete the task. After this time, a second saliva sample was collected.
A comparison of the samples showed that testosterone levels increased by 7.8% after five minutes alone with a woman, and in young men with more aggressive and dominant temperaments, this figure was even higher. However, if the subject was left alone with a man, testosterone levels remained unchanged.
Participants in the experiment were asked to rate the attractiveness of a woman in the same room with them. The results showed that different ratings did not affect the magnitude of change in testosterone levels, which were the same in all cases.
Study leader Leander van der Meaij of the University of Groningen says the observed increase in testosterone levels may be “an automatic response in the male body that activates receptors in organs and the nervous system, preparing the body to attract a member of the opposite sex.”
According to Dutch researchers, attraction to the opposite sex is the ultimate function of testosterone. It is the hormone responsible for changes in appearance and behavior designed to enhance attractiveness.
This hypothesis is supported by the fact that dominant behavior in men increases their attractiveness as a date candidate, as well as the results of another study that show that men who exhibit dominant behavior are more likely to successfully contact women.