Ladies, it could be time to get the straighteners out – as a new study reveals women with smooth, shiny hair are judged as being younger, healthier and more attractive.
Researchers have discovered that the way you style your hair can have a significant impact on how you’re perceived by strangers.
Even subtle variations in thickness, density and style can make a difference, they found.
And it could explain why the likes of Kim Kardashian, Claudia Winkleman and Jennifer Aniston all favour a particular hairdo.
The team, from the University of Vienna, carried out two experiments involving photographs of a woman wearing a range of natural Caucasian hair wigs.
These varied in colour, length and style, including straight and curly options.
Across the study, they discovered that straight, ‘high–shine’ hair was the most highly rated by participants.
And the findings may provide some inspiration for those looking to get rid of their beachy summer waves.
Women with smooth, shiny hair are judged as being younger, healthier and more attractive. Pictured: Kim Kardashian
High– and low–shine versions of 10 hair types, created from manipulations of natural hair wigs. Participants were asked to rate each style on how young, healthy and attractive they believed it looked
Neutral blond short straight hair was rated as the most healthy, attractive and youthful, the study found
For the first part of their study, the team prepared 10 pairs of wigs that included ‘neutral blonde, short straight’, ‘dark brown, short curls’, and ‘medium brown, long straight’ variations.
For each pair, one wig was treated to be high–shine while the other was sprayed with dry shampoo to make it appear more dull.
A female model wore each of the 20 wigs and photographs of the back of her head were shown to 1,500 women from the US, Germany and Spain.
Across nearly all wig styles, the high–shine version was deemed more youthful and attractive. When it came to judging health, the high–shine wig was consistently picked.
The second study, which involved wigs with different levels of ‘alignment’, found those that were smooth and straight were perceived to be more youthful, healthy and attractive compared to those that were frizzy or backcombed.
The combination that was rated highest overall was hair that was smooth and straight, with high shine and low volume.
This was applicable to both dark and light hair colours, they revealed – but neutral, blonde, short hair was ranked the best.
‘The current findings also suggest that grooming and maintenance of hair that preserves alignment and shine leads to higher ratings of physical appearance,’ they wrote in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science.
Jennifer Aniston’s sleek ‘do’ became so popular in the hit series Friends, countless women tried to emulate her style
Across the study, they discovered that straight, ‘high–shine’ hair was the most highly rated by participants. Pictured: Claudia Winkleman, who is renowned for her sleek, straight hair
For those wanting to recreate the look, the team revealed how they created the sleek style for their experiment.
‘The high shine condition of each wig was created by using a clarifying shampoo, followed by brush–blow–drying and heat straightening’, they said.
They cautioned that their study focused on wigs that were European hair types.
‘It is unclear whether, for hair from other ethnic groups, alignment and shine play equally important roles as observed in this study,’ they concluded.
Previous studies on hair colour have suggested a ‘rare colour advantage’, indicating that women with less common hair colours are perceived as more attractive than those with more common hair colours.
Meanwhile, others report that women with blonde hair are rated as less physically attractive and more sexually promiscuous than women with medium brown hair.
