Sociobiology

A recent study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society - Biological Sciences provides a sociobiological excuse for the fixation of males on the physical characteristics of women - they're just trying to maximize reproductive fitness:

Facial appearance is a cue to oestrogen levels in women

M.J. Law Smith A1, D.I. Perrett A1, B.C. Jones A1, R.E. Cornwell A1, F.R. Moore A1, D.R. Feinberg A1, L.G. Boothroyd A1, S.J. Durrani A1, M.R. Stirrat A1, S. Whiten A2, R.M. Pitman A2, S.G. Hillier A3

A1 University of St Andrews School of Psychology St Andrews, Fife KY16 9JP, UK
A2 University of St Andrews School of Medicine St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TS, UK
A3 University of Edinburgh Centre for Reproductive Biology Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK

Abstract:

Although many accounts of facial attractiveness propose that femininity in women's faces indicates high levels of oestrogen, there is little empirical evidence in support of this assumption. Here, we used assays for urinary metabolites of oestrogen (oestrone-3-glucuronide, E1G) and progesterone (pregnanediol-3-glucuronide, P3G) to investigate the relationship between circulating gonadal hormones and ratings of the femininity, attractiveness and apparent health of women's faces. Positive correlations were observed between late follicular oestrogen and ratings of femininity, attractiveness and health. Positive correlations of luteal progesterone and health and attractiveness ratings were marginally significant. Ratings of facial attributions did not relate to hormone levels for women wearing make-up when photographed. There was no effect of sex of rater on the relationships between oestrogen and ratings of facial appearance. These findings demonstrate that female facial appearance holds detectable cues to reproductive health that are considered attractive by other people.