Bald guys are hot!
Florida’s Barry University recently released a survey studying people’s responses to bald men. (Yes, you read that right).
Dr. Frank Muscarella, the clinical psychologist in charge of the survey, said the results found that people believe bald men are “more intelligent, dominant, and overall sexier” than men with hair.
The participants looked at pictures of men with bald heads and men with heads of hair. From there, they were to state their spot decisions about the men (how aggressive the men seemed, how attractive they were, etc).
The way they did it was that the researchers had participants rate pictures. (No, they didn’t rate online pictures to match sexuality like other studies we've talked about).
It turns out that the participants saw the bald men as more diplomatic and socially mature. Then, they were also seen as less aggressive and physically attractive.
Apparently, when we see or think about bald men, we imagine them to be great social gamers with political and social power. For instance, think of a power executive in a suit while enjoying his sweet, deluxe office. Is he bald? Would he look good bald?
If you were confused, as we were, with Dr. Muscarella saying that bald men are perceived as more attractive, yet the results stated that it’s actually the opposite, the good doctor explained his reasoning to Daily Mail.
“It could be speculated that although the characteristic of baldness decreases a man’s perceived physical attractiveness, it increases his perceived social dominance.”
“Studies have shown baldness in men is seen as a non-threatening form of social dominance. There is a large body of literature that shows that although women like physically attractive men, they are also very attracted to signs of high social dominance.”
“Consequently, it could now be explained how the characteristic was passed on. My speculation is that as humans evolved and the group became increasingly important for survival, males played a more integral role in the family group, and it may have been adaptive to evolve a morphological sign of this dominance-related role and one that made the adult males appear less threatening and more approachable to facilitate interactions with them.”
So, he’s saying that though bald men may not physically attract people, they socially attract them because we perceive that they can take care of us with their power. Ok, Doctor. Whatever you say.
That said, these results affect a great number of men out there.
In fact, there are statistics that show that 66 percent of men at the age of 35 have lost a considerable amount of their hair. Then for men aged 55 the number has gone up to 85 percent.
For men, growing bald can be a scary thing. We misconstrue it to mean we’re aging and dying, becoming impotent, and losing our social worth.
More: How to look like a super hot man past 40
That’s why Dr. Muscarella’s work, and the work of bald celebrities, to change perceptions is amazing. (Dr. Muscarella even has an unpublished study that shows that bald men have an equal amount, if not more, sexual partners as guys with heads of hair).
And if you need any more inspiration, just look at Mr. Clean. Been bald for years and has attracted people all over the world.
