[00:00:00] Can the way someone moves change how we judge them? UK researchers examined whether static cues such as body shape and dynamic cues like walking and dancing influence how people judge attractiveness, competence and warmth. Different levels of visual stimuli were created using volunteers including static pictures, dynamic videos and motion capture videos, which isolate movement. Next, 54 raters from Europe and North America viewed the different types of stimuli and rated each person from 1 to 7 on attractiveness, competence and warmth.
[00:00:30] Both appearance and movement appeared to shape social judgments. Movement is especially important in judging competence, with dynamic cues predicting attractiveness ratings much more strongly than static cues during both walking and dancing. For attractiveness, static and dynamic cues both contribute to a significant degree. Measures of warmth showed a more mixed pattern with static cues playing a stronger role during walking, while both static and dynamic cues contributed during dancing. The lesson the attraction we feel towards others depends on more than what someone looks like. How a person moves. Showing confidence, caring or good humor provides additional social information affecting attraction.
