Put a Ring on it — Fourth Finger Foretells Handsomeness — Dave’s Diary

High Five! Now look at your hand.  We’ve talked about the predictive possibilities of the male ring finger in the past—higher income, better health etc.  Now a new study out of Switzerland indicates that men whose ring finger (or fourth finger) is longer than his index finger are seen as “more handsome” in the eyes of women.

Again, it’s all about testosterone.  Specifically, fetal exposure to the male hormone while in the womb.  Researchers have determined that there are intricate links between fetal levels of the male hormone and the development of certain physical traits and what attracts women.

More than 80 female college students, all of whom were between the ages of 18 and 34, viewed photographs of 49 men, who were all of a similar age. They were instructed to rate them for masculinity and attractiveness. The results:

• For virtually all the women, the longer the ring finger, compared to the index finger, the more attractive the face was rated.
• While attractiveness and symmetry in the face are highly correlated, the women surprisingly did not consistently identify the same men as being "masculine."
• Women's preferences for voice or odors did not correspond to the longer ring-finger males, which is more equated with adult levels of testosterone than it is with fetal exposure to the hormone.