Nine-month-old infants prefer unattractive bodies over attractive bodies

► Nine-month-old infants prefer unattractive over attractive bodies. ► Six- and 3.5-month-olds do not show a preference for unattractive or attractive bodies. ► Six-month-olds can discriminate between unattractive and attractive bodies. ► Perceptions of body attractiveness differ for infants and adults. ► This study suggests we are not born with a concept of attractive bodies. Infant responses to adult-defined unattractive male body shapes versus attractive male body shapes were assessed using visual preference and habituation procedures. Looking behavior indicated that 9-month-olds have a preference for unattractive male body shapes over attractive ones; however, this preference is demonstrated only when head information is obscured. In contrast, 6- and 3.5-month-olds did not show a preference for unattractive or attractive bodies. The 6-month-olds discriminated between the two categories, whereas the 3.5-month-olds did not. Because unattractive body shapes are more common than attractive/athletic body shapes in our everyday environment, a preference for unattractive body shapes at 9months of age suggests that preferences for particular human body shapes reflect level of exposure and familiarity rather than culturally defined stereotypes of body attractiveness.