The #1 Trait That Makes Men Not Trust You, According To Research
The trait that's repelling men on dating apps, says science.
Dean Drobot | Canva Online dating can be so tough for women because there are a lot of creeps online.
They also know that men are very visual so they must have the perfect photo to put their best foot forward. Now, there's some very interesting news that might make women put a little less effort into their photos. (Yes, really. Cue: women everywhere rejoicing.)
Well, ladies, here you go: men don't trust your hot selfies.
According to 2015 research from the University of Connecticut, men see a hot woman's photo and instantly think she can't be trusted.
Why is this? Men in society are conditioned to think women who use cosmetics are vain, deceitful, and narcissistic, the researchers explain.
The researchers asked 153 straight men and 152 straight women, ages 17 to 36, to look at one of four pictures.
Researchers showed men photos of women. One set was "enhanced," with women wearing makeup and styled hair, while the other set of photos had women with a more natural look.
Both the men and women ranked the people who had all the enhancements, like makeup, styled hair, and flattering lighting, as significantly more attractive than the natural photos.
The men found the women in the enhanced photos less trustworthy. Women, on the other hand, found more attractive men to be more trustworthy. Women also looked at a photo of the same man who was either unenhanced or enhanced with styled hair, makeup, and flattering lighting.
In a world where people's judgments are so far off, is there really any hope? Possibly.
"The guys were very honest in their assessment of the female. They say I do find her more attractive and I do find her less trustworthy and I am OK with it," explains the study's author, Rory Gloin. “Males are so used to seeing women who have been Photoshopped and edited [in society] and they are just skeptical that maybe she's not really that good-looking."
It's different for the women, as in their eyes, attractive men benefited from a “halo effect.” The halo effect is someone assuming something is going to be good or worth it simply because of how appealing it looks, basically because one aspect of it seems good, it means the rest of it is going to be too.
“If he is attractive and I would like to date him, he must be trustworthy,” Gloin explains.
More of a reason why society should ease up on Photoshop so women don't feel pressure to look like something that's fake, and men don't have to be so jaded.
Nicole Weaver is a senior writer for Showbiz Cheat Sheet whose work has been featured in New York Magazine, Teen Vogue, and more.