Attention Alters Perceived Attractiveness
Open accessAbstract
Can attention alter the impression of a face? Previous studies showed that attention modulates the appearance of lower-level visual features. For instance, attention can make a simple stimulus appear to have higher contrast than it actually does. We tested whether attention can also alter the perception of a higher-order property—namely, facial attractiveness. We asked participants to judge the relative attractiveness of two faces after summoning their attention to one of the faces using a briefly presented visual cue. Across trials, participants judged the attended face to be more attractive than the same face when it was unattended. This effect was not due to decision or response biases, but rather was due to changes in perceptual processing of the faces. These results show that attention alters perceived facial attractiveness, and broadly demonstrate that attention can influence higher-level perception and may affect people’s initial impressions of one another.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Higher-level perceptual features such as attractiveness or intensity of emotional expression in a face are altered by attention.
“Higher-level perceptual features such as the attractiveness46 or the intensity of emotional expression in a face47 are also altered by attention.”
From Paying attention to attention in depression (2019) · cites this paper as [46]
Cites
James, W. (1891) · Henry Holt and Company eBooks · doi:10.1037/11059-000 · Cited by 25,799 · see citing works
Brainard, D. H. (1997) · Spatial Vision · doi:10.1163/156856897x00357 · Cited by 19,308 · see citing works
The VideoToolbox software for visual psychophysics: transforming numbers into movies
Pelli, D. G. (1997) · Spatial Vision · doi:10.1163/156856897x00366 · Cited by 11,110 · see citing works
First Impressions: Making Up Your Mind After a 100-Ms Exposure to a Face
Willis, J., & Todorov, A. (2006) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01750.x · Cited by 2,300 · see citing works
Bergum, B. O., Long, J. B., & Baddeley, A. (1982) · The American Journal of Psychology · doi:10.2307/1422199 · Cited by 2,240 · see citing works
The Evolutionary Psychology of Facial Beauty
Rhodes, G. (2005) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.57.102904.190208 · Cited by 1,757 · see citing works
Pashler, H. (1997) · doi:10.7551/mitpress/5677.001.0001 · Cited by 1,607 · see citing works
Inferences of competence from faces predict election outcomes
Todorov, A., Mandisodza, A. N., Goren, A., & Hall, C. C. (2005) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1110589 · Cited by 1,508 · see citing works
Voluntary versus automatic control over the mind's eye's movement
Jonides, J. (1981) · Attention and performance · Cited by 1,341 · see citing works
Effects of sexual dimorphism on facial attractiveness
Perrett, D. I., Lee, K. J., Penton‐Voak, I. S., Rowland, D., Yoshikawa, S., Burt, D. M., Henzi, S. P., Castles, D. L., & Akamatsu, S. (1998) · Nature · doi:10.1038/29772 · Cited by 1,331 · see citing works
Attractive Faces Are Only Average
Langlois, J. H., & Roggman, L. A. (1990) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.1990.tb00079.x · Cited by 1,319 · see citing works
Carrasco, M., Ling, S., & Read, S. (2004) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn1194 · Cited by 1,095 · see citing works
Sustained and transient components of focal visual attention
Nakayama, K., & MacKeben, M. (1989) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(89)90144-2 · Cited by 1,035 · see citing works
Symmetry and Human Facial Attractiveness
Perrett, D. I., Burt, D. M., Penton‐Voak, I. S., Lee, K. J., Rowland, D., & Edwards, R. (1999) · Evolution and Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/s1090-5138(99)00014-8 · Cited by 553 · see citing works
Facial symmetry and the perception of beauty
Rhodes, G., Proffitt, F., Grady, J. M., & Sumich, A. L. (1998) · Psychonomic Bulletin & Review · doi:10.3758/bf03208842 · Cited by 519 · see citing works
Cunningham, M., Barbee, A. P., & Pike, C. L. (1990) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.59.1.61 · Cited by 491 · see citing works
Cunningham, M. R., Barbee, A. P., & Pike, C. L. (1990) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.59.1.61 · Cited by 395 · see citing works
LaBerge, D. (1995) · Harvard University Press eBooks · doi:10.4159/harvard.9780674183940 · Cited by 369 · see citing works
Efran, M. G. (1974) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/0092-6566(74)90044-0 · Cited by 333 · see citing works
Attentional processing: the brain's art of mindfulness
(1995) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.33-1523 · Cited by 324 · see citing works
Wright, R. D., & Ward, L. M. (2008) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195130492.001.0001 · Cited by 302 · see citing works
Averageness, Exaggeration, and Facial Attractiveness
Rhodes, G., & Tremewan, T. (1996) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.1996.tb00338.x · Cited by 289 · see citing works
A sex difference in facial contrast and its exaggeration by cosmetics
Russell, R. (2009) · Perception · doi:10.1068/p6331 · Cited by 206 · see citing works
Attention Alters the Appearance of Spatial Frequency and Gap Size
Gobell, J. L., & Carrasco, M. (2005) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2005.01588.x · Cited by 198 · see citing works
Cross-modal cueing of attention alters appearance and early cortical processing of visual stimuli
Störmer, V. S., McDonald, J. J., & Hillyard, S. A. (2009) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0907573106 · Cited by 182 · see citing works
Self-citationSex, Beauty, and the Relative Luminance of Facial Features
Russell, R. P. (2003) · Perception · doi:10.1068/p5101 · Cited by 180 · see citing works
Voluntary Attention Enhances Contrast Appearance
Liu, T., Abrams, J., & Carrasco, M. (2009) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02300.x · Cited by 172 · see citing works
Exogenous attention and color perception: Performance and appearance of saturation and hue
Fuller, S., & Carrasco, M. (2006) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/j.visres.2006.07.014 · Cited by 157 · see citing works
Attention changes perceived size of moving visual patterns
Anton-Erxleben, K., Henrich, C., & Treue, S. (2007) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/7.11.5 · Cited by 136 · see citing works
Attention biases decisions but does not alter appearance
Schneider, K. A., & Komlos, M. (2008) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/8.15.3 · Cited by 122 · see citing works
Apparent contrast differs across the vertical meridian: Visual and attentional factors
Fuller, S., Rodriguez, R. Z., & Carrasco, M. (2008) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/8.1.16 · Cited by 113 · see citing works
Salient Sounds Activate Human Visual Cortex Automatically
McDonald, J. J., Störmer, V. S., Martı́nez, A., Feng, W., & Hillyard, S. A. (2013) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.5902-12.2013 · Cited by 109 · see citing works
Self-citationRevision der Hauptpunkte der Psychophysik
Fechner, G. T. (1965) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 88 · see citing works
Attention makes moving objects be perceived to move faster
Turatto, M., Vescovi, M., & Valsecchi, M. (2006) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/j.visres.2006.10.002 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
Attention alters the appearance of motion coherence
Liu, T., Fuller, S., & Carrasco, M. (2006) · Psychonomic Bulletin & Review · doi:10.3758/bf03213931 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Bronstad, P. M., & Russell, R. P. (2007) · Perception · doi:10.1068/p5793 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Evaluating comparative and equality judgments in contrast perception: Attention alters appearance
Anton-Erxleben, K., Abrams, J., & Carrasco, M. (2010) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/10.11.6 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
Does attention alter appearance?
Schneider, K. A. (2006) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/bf03193703 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
Carrasco, M., Fuller, S., & Ling, S. (2008) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/pp.70.7.1151 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Involuntary attention and brightness contrast
Prinzmetal, W., Long, V., & Leonhardt, J. M. (2008) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/pp.70.7.1139 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Attention enhances contrast appearance via increased input baseline of neural responses
Cutrone, E., Heeger, D. J., & Carrasco, M. (2014) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/14.14.16 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Transient covert attention does alter appearance: A reply to Schneider (2006)
Ling, S., & Carrasco, M. (2007) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/bf03193943 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Transient covert attention and the perceived rate of flicker
Montagna, B., & Carrasco, M. (2006) · Journal of Vision · doi:10.1167/6.9.8 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Independent Effects of Adaptation and Attention on Perceived Speed
Anton-Erxleben, K., Herrmann, K., & Carrasco, M. (2012) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0956797612449178 · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Illusory rebound motion and the motion continuity heuristic
Hsieh, P.-J., Caplovitz, G. P., & Tse, P. U. (2005) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/j.visres.2005.02.025 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Paying attention to attention in depression
Keller, A. S., Leikauf, J. E., Holt-Gosselin, B., Staveland, B. R., & Williams, L. M. (2019) · Translational Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41398-019-0616-1 · Cited by 329 · see citing works
Spatial attention alters visual appearance
Carrasco, M., & Barbot, A. (2019) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2018.10.010 · Cited by 161 · see citing works
- Authors
- Störmer, V. S., & Alvarez, G. A.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Störmer, Viola S.
- Venue
- Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2016-03-10
- Volume
- 27
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 563-571
- ISSN
- 0956-7976 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-9280
- OpenAlex
- W2295453057
- Cited by
- 52
- References
- 45
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 4.24
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- nrs.harvard.edu
- Locations
- Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation (0953730, CAREER)
- European Commission (329920)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Face Recognition and Perception
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
- Keywords
- attention, facial attractiveness, face perception, visual attention, social impressions, visual cues, contrast enhancement, first impressions
- MeSH terms
- Facial Recognition, Adolescent, Adult, Attention, Beauty, Female, Humans, Male, Visual Perception, Young Adult
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
