Breasts are big in America. And I’m not just talking physically, though in my town of Hollywood, you’re more likely to see more silicone than they used to make the space shuttle – on one woman, no less. Breasts have achieved a place in our mental oeuvre than seem to take up more energy than one would think body parts deserve.
For women, our relationships with our boobs/breasts/milk sacks can be complicated. If we have largest chesticles, some of us wish for the freedom to run without corsetry. If we have smaller breasts, some of us buy push-up bras and consider plastic surgery. For many women, coming to terms with their chest sizes is a life-long process. And for the women who don’t give a damn or feel they have other things to worry about, rock on.
But from the women who cringe when they get ogled in a bar to the women who wish their bikinis had more bounce – we hear you, sisters. As a new study points out, your anxiety may come from nature, not necessarily neurosis. In other words, you’re not imagining anything. The Telegraph reports that a study from the University of Texas, Austin, confirms that men look at women’s bodies for the short-term, as in for dates and one night stands. And for long-term relationships? Men consider faces over bodies.
Yes, I’m sure we just all heard a collective gasp of “duh” across the world. Heterosexual men look at women’s bodies? Cows like grass? Dogs like bones? Anderson Cooper is a stone-cold fox? But the UT researchers went a bit farther with their investigations. And yes, you’re all gorgeous and screw what your preferred gender thinks, male or female, right? Physically, it’s a bit of a different story.
The UT study looked at the reactions of 375 men and women who were asked to decide if they would date a member of the opposite sex based purely on their bodies or faces. Men were asked if they would consider a pretty face or a voluptuous body. Looking at pictures of bodies with faces obscured or faces with bodies obscured, men were much more likely to go for body over face.
Then there were the men who were looking to settle down for the long term. These men picked faces over bodies. As the Texas study explained, “Both the body and face can provide clues as to a woman’s reproductive value and current fertility, but this study revealed men go for bodily cues more when looking for a short-term mate.” And might we point out, one study does not define an entire gender or sexual orientation.
And finally, what about the women in the study? Did women pick men according to their broad shoulders or richly-filled in hairlines? Not at all, according to the study. Women all gave priority to a man’s face in both short-term and long-term scenarios.
Image: scragz