SHE IS NOT A BEAUTY EVEN WHEN SHE SMILES - POSSIBLE EVOLUTIONARY BASIS FOR A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FACIAL ATTRACTIVENESS AND HEMISPHERIC-SPECIALIZATION

The asymmetrical status of facial beauty has rarely been investigated. We studied positive facial characteristics, attractiveness and smilin g, through the use of left-left and right-right composites of unfamili ar faces of women and men with natural expressions. Results showed tha t women's right-right composites were judged significantly more attrac tive than left-left composites while there was no left-right differenc e in men's composites (Experiment 1). On the other hand, left-left com posites were judged to have more pronounced smiling expressions than r ight-right composites in both women's and men's faces (Experiment 2). The results confirm previous findings for leftward facial expressivene ss and show for the first time asymmetry in facial attractiveness and a difference in its manifestation in women's and men's faces. The find ings have biological implications for the relationship between the app earance of the sides of the face and hemispheric specialization. The o rganization of beauty in the human face may have been shaped by evolut ionary pressures on facial asymmetries, especially as they pertain to mate selection.