Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
  • Neuroscience
  • About
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Social Psychology

People support harsher or milder punishment for a person based on their attractiveness and sex

by Eric W. Dolan
April 13, 2014
in Social Psychology
Photo credit: Michael Dorausch (Creative Commons)

Photo credit: Michael Dorausch (Creative Commons)

Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
Follow PsyPost on Google News

New research published in PLoS One shows that the sex and physical attractiveness of a person influences social responses to their unjust behavior.

“By presenting photos of attractive or less attractive proposers who made fair or unfair offers to recipients in a dictator game to participants acting as a third-party punisher, we found that Chinese participants in general had harsher feelings towards individuals who made unfair offers than towards those who made fair offers; however, the strength of this intention to punish the proposers was modulated by the sex and attractiveness of the proposer,” Jia Li and Xiaolin Zhou of Pekin University wrote in their study.

The researchers used the two-player “Dictator Game” to examine how physical attractiveness impacted people’s assessment of fairness and justice. In the game, one person — the dictator — is given a fixed amount of money and asked to share that reward with another person. The other person in the game must passively accept whatever amount the dictator offers.

For their experiment, Li and Zhou had participants observe a Dictator Game via a computer, and then evaluate the reasonableness of the offers and express their intention to punish the dictators. The participants only saw what the dictator looked like. The recipient in the game was anonymous.

The participants viewed one of many different scenarios in the Dictator Game. In some cases, the dictator was male, while in other cases the dictator was female. Sometimes, the dictator was attractive, while other times the dictator was less attractive. Some offers were fair, while others were clearly unfair.

Not surprisingly, the participants wanted harsher punishments for the dictators who made unfair offers. They were also generally more willing to support punishment for male than female dictators.

The researchers found that the physical attractiveness of the dictator did not influence how reasonable the participants thought the offer was. However, physical attractiveness did influence to what extent the participants wanted to punish the dictators.

This link between physical attractiveness and willingness to punish was dependent upon both the participant’s and the dictator’s sex. Participants supported greater punishments for attractive dictators of the same-sex, but they were less willing punish attractive dictators of the opposite-sex. Female participants were particularly less tolerant of the unattractive opposite-sex dictators.

“Regarding people who are not attractive, same-sex people might at least have the benefit of similarity (i.e., people tend to feel more comfortable being around same-sex individuals who are not threatening), whereas opposite-sex individuals who are not attractive elicit no positive reward for the perceiver (i.e., in terms of evolutionary psychology, they would be neither interesting as a potential mate nor would they be likely to become a friend, as most friendships are among people of the same gender),” Li and Zhou explained in the study. “Given past research in evolutionary and social psychology showing that females are choosier regarding opposite-sex cohorts, it seems comprehensible that the female participants in the ultimatum game reacted comparably negative toward male proposers who were neither particularly good-looking nor appeared to be fair and generous.”

TweetSendScanShareSendPinShareShareShareShareShare

RELATED

Scientists just uncovered a surprising illusion in how we remember time
Racism and Discrimination

Hispanic adolescents experience later sleep timing and greater social jet lag than peers, study finds

July 3, 2025

Hispanic adolescents reported later sleep timing, greater social jet lag, shorter weekday sleep, higher caffeine intake, and more evening screen time than peers. Screen use and stress, but not caffeine, were linked to delayed sleep and sleep misalignment.

Read moreDetails
Racial and religious differences help explain why unmarried voters lean Democrat
Political Psychology

Student loan debt doesn’t deter civic engagement — it may actually drive it, new research suggests

July 3, 2025

Americans with student loan debt are more likely to vote and engage in political activities than those without debt, likely because they see government as responsible and capable of addressing their financial burden through policy change.

Read moreDetails
Scientists just uncovered a surprising illusion in how we remember time
Infidelity

Not bothered by celebrity infidelity? This psychological trait might be why

July 3, 2025

The online shaming of unfaithful celebrities is a modern spectacle, but why do some join in while others don't? Researchers exploring this puzzle found a key predictor: a belief in a just world, which unexpectedly dampens outrage and blame.

Read moreDetails
Scientists just uncovered a surprising illusion in how we remember time
Mental Health

New research suggests the conservative mental health advantage is a myth

July 3, 2025

Do conservatives really have better mental well-being than liberals? A new study suggests the answer depends entirely on how you ask. The well-known ideological gap disappears when "mental health" is replaced with the less-stigmatized phrase "overall mood."

Read moreDetails
New psychology study sheds light on mysterious “feelings of presence” during isolation
Political Psychology

People who think “everyone agrees with me” are more likely to support populism

July 1, 2025

People who wrongly believe that most others share their political views are more likely to support populist ideas, according to a new study. These false beliefs can erode trust in democratic institutions and fuel resentment toward political elites.

Read moreDetails
Researchers identify neural mechanism behind memory prioritization
Social Psychology

People who are more likely to die seem to care less about the future

June 30, 2025

Individuals with higher mortality risk—as judged by actuarial life insurance data—tend to care less about long-term consequences. They show more impulsivity and less future planning, consistent with evolutionary theories that link time horizon to environmental and internal health cues.

Read moreDetails
Scientists show how you’re unknowingly sealing yourself in an information bubble
Cognitive Science

Scientists show how you’re unknowingly sealing yourself in an information bubble

June 29, 2025

Scientists have found that belief polarization doesn’t always come from misinformation or social media bubbles. Instead, it often begins with a simple search. Our choice of words—and the algorithm’s response—can subtly seal us inside our own informational comfort zones.

Read moreDetails
Radical leaders inspire stronger devotion because they make followers feel significant, study finds
Political Psychology

Radical leaders inspire stronger devotion because they make followers feel significant, study finds

June 28, 2025

A new study finds that voters are more motivated by radical political leaders than moderates, because supporting bold causes makes them feel personally significant—driving greater activism, sacrifice, and long-term engagement across elections in the United States and Poland.

Read moreDetails

SUBSCRIBE

Go Ad-Free! Click here to subscribe to PsyPost and support independent science journalism!

STAY CONNECTED

LATEST

Hispanic adolescents experience later sleep timing and greater social jet lag than peers, study finds

Student loan debt doesn’t deter civic engagement — it may actually drive it, new research suggests

Understanding “neuronal ensembles” could revolutionize addiction treatment

Not bothered by celebrity infidelity? This psychological trait might be why

Genetic factors may influence how well exercise buffers against childhood trauma

Tips for parents in talking with your kids about your partner’s mental illness

Subjective cognitive struggles strongly linked to social recovery in depression

New research suggests the conservative mental health advantage is a myth

         
       
  • Contact us
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and Conditions
[Do not sell my information]

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy