Determining whether or not someone is beautiful is an unconscious process for most, but the universal standards and cultural influences used to define attractiveness show the science behind a pretty face.

“Beauty is based on both physical characteristics from an evolutionary background and existing in cultural environments that further define what’s beautiful,” said Zlatan Krizan, assistant professor of psychology.

The universal characteristics span across cultures and include different traits for males and females, Krizan said. Women are considered beautiful when they possess baby-like features, such as large eyes and a small nose, because female beauty is based on youthful appearances that are difficult to maintain as aging occurs, Krizan said. As females mature, sexual maturity is shown through an elongating face, which results in raised cheeks.

However, the overall attractiveness of a woman is not only defined by her facial features.

“The hip-to-waist ratio that is universally considered attractive is 0.7. This means that the waist is 0.7 times smaller than the hips,” Krizan said.

Men also have general standards of beauty. A “well-defined, high brow line, large forehead and square jaw” are considered universally handsome in males, Krizan said. And, just like women, men have a specific ratio that helps define their attractiveness.

“A ratio of 0.75 for a man’s V-shaped torso, meaning his waist is 0.75 times the width of his shoulders” is a general trait of male beauty, Krizan said.

Although specific ratios or features may differ between genders, one attribute of beauty applies to both genders.

“The more facial symmetry a person has, the more beautiful they are perceived to be,” Krizan said.

Allen Vanderwiel, freshman in agricultural engineering, said he notices cultural influences of beauty more than universal standards such as symmetry.

“I notice when people get prettied, and you can tell they tried to look good. I usually notice how the hair is done,” he said.

Vanderwiel also said clothing is something he notices.

“If everyone is wearing sweatpants, but there’s someone wearing jeans … different things like that stand out,” Vanderwiel said.

Krizan said characteristics of beauty such as weight, hairstyles and make-up vary from culture to culture. Babies may even judge people based on looks.

“There is evidence that babies respond more positively to attractive faces, which proves that beauty is not just culturally influenced,” Krizan said.

Miranda Rouse, junior in animal science, said she does not follow universal formulas or cultural influences to define beauty, but relies on getting to know someone first.

“I generally think that if someone is a nice person, they are pretty … if they have nice hair and make-up, but are snotty or crabby, I don’t think they are pretty,” Rouse said.

Krizan said there are many other factors that determine whether or not we perceive someone attractive.

“The more you know about a person, physical appearance becomes less and less important,” Krizan said.

Judgments of appearances happen almost automatically, however, Rouse said she hoped people would evaluate personalities first.

“Anyone can look like they just rolled out of bed, and then the next day look like they are going to the prom,” Rouse said.