New Study Suggests Women Are Attracted To Men That Look Like Their Brothers

couple

by Elizabeth Bennett |
Published on

While Freud's 'Father Complex' may suggest that women look for men similar to their fathers, new research suggests women find men who look similar to their brothers the most attractive.

While it is certainly a disturbing thought, the science kind of makes sense. Researchers at Northumbria University found that choosing a partner with similar facial features could put you at a genetic advantage.

They carried out the research by asking 32 women to share both photos of their partner and their brother. Alongside this they collected images of celebrities and their partners and brothers.

Participants in the study were then shown five photos. One was the woman's partner, one was her brother and the other three were random. When asked to identify which looked most like the brother they nearly always chose the partner.

Researchers suggested that this meant there was a 'clear evidence for perceptual similarity in facial photographs of a woman's partner and her brother.'

According to Dr Tamsin Saxton this is all to do with fact we look for familiarity when choosing partners, and this isn't just in relation to perosnality or interests but physical appearance too.

‘Our findings were not a rule or true of every woman but we do find that, at levels greater than chance, partners did show some subtle resemblance to the women’s brothers,’ Saxton told The Independent.

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