During the study, done by Mclean Hospital, 27 volunteers looked at images of babies on a computer screen—some were healthy and some had abnormal facial features. The volunteers could keep the image on the screen longer than the scheduled four seconds, or remove it early.
Both men and women kept the attractive babies on the screen, but women tended to shorten the viewing time of abnormal babies. While there are many reasons the women may have avoided the less attractive babies (feelings of empathy, sensitivity to the images, etc.) the researchers concluded that women are less inclined to gravitate toward a child with physical abnormalities.
All I know is that my daughter is gorgeous (aren't all babies?), and I love her to death.
Does a mother love a baby no matter what it looks like? Or do you think pretty babies get special treatment?
Written by Suzanne Murray for
CafeMom's Baby Buzz
