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Social judgments of facial appearance may reflect that individual’s physical condition. In this thesis, I present empirical studies investigating social judgments of facial appearance and their underlying physiology. The first empirical chapter investigates the relationship between social judgments of women’s facial appearance and their salivary cortisol levels and body mass index (BMI). Faces of women with lower BMI were rated as more attractive, healthier, and more feminine. By contrast with previous research, social judgments of women’s faces were not related to their salivary cortisol, however. These results suggest that the type of health information reflected in women's faces includes qualities indexed by BMI, but does not necessarily include qualities indexed by cortisol. In my second empirical chapter, I investigated the interrelationships among a composite measure of men's actual threat potential (derived from measures of their upper-body strength, height, and weight) and composite measures of these men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential (derived from dominance, strength, and weight ratings of their faces and voices, respectively). Although men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential were positively correlated, men's actual threat potential was related to their perceived facial, but not vocal, threat potential. Consistent with other recent work on cues of men’s threat potential, these results present new evidence that men's faces may be a more valid cue of these aspects of threat potential than their voices are. Whereas Chapters 2 and 3 arguably focused on the possible role of face shape characteristics in communicating information about physical condition, Chapter 4 focused specifically on facial coloration. In Chapter 4, I investigated the effects of manipulating color cues in White UK and Chinese faces on White UK and Chinese participants’ judgments of attractiveness and health. By contrast with the cross-cultural similarity between Whit

Social judgments of facial appearance may reflect that individual’s physical condition. In this thesis, I present empirical studies investigating social judgments of facial appearance and their underlying physiology. The first empirical chapter investigates the relationship between social judgments of women’s facial appearance and their salivary cortisol levels and body mass index (BMI). Faces of women with lower BMI were rated as more attractive, healthier, and more feminine. By contrast with previous research, social judgments of women’s faces were not related to their salivary cortisol, however. These results suggest that the type of health information reflected in women's faces includes qualities indexed by BMI, but does not necessarily include qualities indexed by cortisol. In my second empirical chapter, I investigated the interrelationships among a composite measure of men's actual threat potential (derived from measures of their upper-body strength, height, and weight) and composite measures of these men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential (derived from dominance, strength, and weight ratings of their faces and voices, respectively). Although men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential were positively correlated, men's actual threat potential was related to their perceived facial, but not vocal, threat potential. Consistent with other recent work on cues of men’s threat potential, these results present new evidence that men's faces may be a more valid cue of these aspects of threat potential than their voices are. Whereas Chapters 2 and 3 arguably focused on the possible role of face shape characteristics in communicating information about physical condition, Chapter 4 focused specifically on facial coloration. In Chapter 4, I investigated the effects of manipulating color cues in White UK and Chinese faces on White UK and Chinese participants’ judgments of attractiveness and health. By contrast with the cross-cultural similarity between Whit

Social judgments of facial appearance may reflect that individual’s physical condition. In this thesis, I present empirical studies investigating social judgments of facial appearance and their underlying physiology. The first empirical chapter investigates the relationship between social judgments of women’s facial appearance and their salivary cortisol levels and body mass index (BMI). Faces of women with lower BMI were rated as more attractive, healthier, and more feminine. By contrast with previous research, social judgments of women’s faces were not related to their salivary cortisol, however. These results suggest that the type of health information reflected in women's faces includes qualities indexed by BMI, but does not necessarily include qualities indexed by cortisol. In my second empirical chapter, I investigated the interrelationships among a composite measure of men's actual threat potential (derived from measures of their upper-body strength, height, and weight) and composite measures of these men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential (derived from dominance, strength, and weight ratings of their faces and voices, respectively). Although men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential were positively correlated, men's actual threat potential was related to their perceived facial, but not vocal, threat potential. Consistent with other recent work on cues of men’s threat potential, these results present new evidence that men's faces may be a more valid cue of these aspects of threat potential than their voices are. Whereas Chapters 2 and 3 arguably focused on the possible role of face shape characteristics in communicating information about physical condition, Chapter 4 focused specifically on facial coloration. In Chapter 4, I investigated the effects of manipulating color cues in White UK and Chinese faces on White UK and Chinese participants’ judgments of attractiveness and health. By contrast with the cross-cultural similarity between Whit

Social judgments of facial appearance may reflect that individual’s physical condition. In this thesis, I present empirical studies investigating social judgments of facial appearance and their underlying physiology. The first empirical chapter investigates the relationship between social judgments of women’s facial appearance and their salivary cortisol levels and body mass index (BMI). Faces of women with lower BMI were rated as more attractive, healthier, and more feminine. By contrast with previous research, social judgments of women’s faces were not related to their salivary cortisol, however. These results suggest that the type of health information reflected in women's faces includes qualities indexed by BMI, but does not necessarily include qualities indexed by cortisol. In my second empirical chapter, I investigated the interrelationships among a composite measure of men's actual threat potential (derived from measures of their upper-body strength, height, and weight) and composite measures of these men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential (derived from dominance, strength, and weight ratings of their faces and voices, respectively). Although men's perceived facial and vocal threat potential were positively correlated, men's actual threat potential was related to their perceived facial, but not vocal, threat potential. Consistent with other recent work on cues of men’s threat potential, these results present new evidence that men's faces may be a more valid cue of these aspects of threat potential than their voices are. Whereas Chapters 2 and 3 arguably focused on the possible role of face shape characteristics in communicating information about physical condition, Chapter 4 focused specifically on facial coloration. In Chapter 4, I investigated the effects of manipulating color cues in White UK and Chinese faces on White UK and Chinese participants’ judgments of attractiveness and health. By contrast with the cross-cultural similarity between Whit