Review of a Sex Difference in the Context-Sensitivity of Dominance Perceptions

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Summary
Walkins et al. conducted a study to discover if masculine features were a key ingredient to the perception of dominance. One of the main reasons why Walkins et al. conducted this study was to examine and recognize facial cues that lead towards dominating individuals. It was mentioned in the article the importance of identifying these cues can help individuals avoid dangerous or hazardous situations. Being able to recognize those that can cause physical harm to another is useful for our society where there is so much violent crime. In terms of choosing a potential mate, a woman or a man can use these cues to determine if potential partners should be pursued or avoided. This could assist in avoiding potential rape, spousal abuse and any other acts of violent nature.
There were two hundred participants that took part in this research, one hundred males and one hundred females were recruited from online websites. The study used digitally altered images of individuals with either feminine features or masculine features to try to determine which form of image the participants would may or may not perceive as dominant. Fifty white male images and fifty white female images were chosen for this experiment. Twenty of these images were randomly selected and altered using a computer program to make the individuals posing either more feminine or more masculine. The participants were shown twenty pairs of images and were instructed to determine which image from each pair appeared to be more dominant.
Following two smaller studies to determine the masculinity and dominance of the images, the main study consisted of the participants determining which of the one hundred images were the most dominating. Afterwards, the participants were sho...

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...r many years I have seen and heard of many incidences of rape and abuse and I have always wondered why it happens and how to prevent it. Within my small group of friends and family, child and spousal abuse was regrettably common. I liked this article because it tries to explain why there is a lot of violence amongst individuals. Using altered images in order to study dominate cues is a valuable asset towards the future of society. As individuals become more aware of these facial cues there would be a greater opportunity to avoid physical abuse or other kinds of physical harm. These kinds of dominant cues would also help in future mate selection making it easier and safer for women and men to choose nonaggressive or dominant partners. This vital information could aid in helping potential victims avoid potential rape, spousal abuse and any other acts of violent nature

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