When someone is "easy on the eye," it could
also be because they are easy on the brain,
according to a new international study.
Scientists from universities in the United
States and New Zealand analyzed previous studies
and conducted new research to find that attractiveness
could be linked to ease of mental processing.
The study, published in the journal Psychological
Science, looked at previous research that
found people rated images of standard-looking
objects or people as more attractive than
variations of these things.
They also tested people by showing them a
prototype image made up of dots and geometric
patterns and variations of it to see which
people liked the most.
Piotr Winkielman of the University of California,
San Diego, who led the research, said the
less time it took to classify a pattern, the
more attractive it was judged.
"We show that this preference for the prototype
is a function of the prototype being particularly
easy to perceive," Winkielman stated. "So
the easier the better."
Winkielman pointed out that this "beauty
in averageness" could apply to things like
the silhouette of a car, a watch, as well
as to people.
"You can even get it for the taste of chili,"
he said.
"An anecdote was reported in the paper that
some guy won a chili cooking contest by basically
going around to various competitors and putting
a spoon of chili into his own pot and eventually
he found the perfect, well balanced flavor."
