Physical Attractiveness, Social Skills, and Same-Sex Peer Popularity
Keywords:
PopularityAbstract
We completed three studies to assess the amount of variance contributed by facial attractiveness and social skills to the prediction of same-sex popularity. Study 1 was an observational investigation that examined the influence of facial attractiveness, visual attention, and dispensing and receiving positive, neutral, and negative behaviors for peer popularity. Study 2 was a replication-extension that added teacher assessments of social skills and competencies. Both investigations used preschool-aged children. Study 3 included kindergarten, fourth-, and seventh-grade children and extended the investigation to a larger age range. As we hypothesized, facial attractiveness, social competence, and antisocial behaviors predicted same-sex peer popularity. For both boys and girls, social competence most strongly predicted popularity. Although developmental age differences were anticipated, only two nonsignificant trends were observed. We discuss our findings in terms of the social power of attraction, expulsion, and action.
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