Should you grow a beard? Here's how women perceive bearded men

Whether or not women think beards are sexy has to do with "moral disgust"

Photo Credit: Frank Marino / Unsplash
  • A new study found that women perceive men with facial hair to be more attractive as well as physically and socially dominant.
  • Women tend to associate more masculine faces with physical strength, social assertiveness, and formidability.
  • Women who display higher levels of "moral disgust," or feelings of repugnance toward taboo behaviors, are more likely to prefer hairy faces.
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The path to less stress? Strategic pessimism.

The key to happiness is being less optimistic and accepting a certain amount of unhappiness.

  • The centuries old philosophy of Stoicism may hold the key to a kind of happiness that is more grounded in reality.
  • The two main ideas of stoic happiness are that problems are caused by your reactions to events not the events themselves, and the only things you can control are your thoughts and your actions.
  • Choosing strategic pessimism over optimism and positive thinking is one way to avoid "unnecessary disturbance and anxiety."
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philosophy brain consciousness emotions happiness mental health mind religion psychology relationships self failure life

Age gives you an edge in the workplace. Here’s how.

60 is the new 30, says Melanie Katzman. Embrace your age and the benefits that come with it.

  • Melanie Katzman has 30 years of experience in her field, yet was advised to tell people she had just 20 years of experience so she wouldn't seem too out of touch.
  • Katzman strongly disagrees with that assessment of age in the workplace. Rather than see it as a liability, older professionals should embrace their age and experience. They can see patterns more broadly, plus they have deep network connections, information, and the desire to be generous.
  • "Research shows us that generativity flows downhill," says Katzman. "... New recruits and aging boomers can really change the world together but we have to not be afraid of stating our age."
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Are humans hardwired for monogamy?

Evolution steered humans toward pair bonding to ensure the survival of genes. But humans tend to get restless.

  • Monogamy is natural, but adultery is, too, says biological anthropologist Helen Fisher.
  • Even though humans are animals that form pair bonds, some humans have a predisposition for restlessness. This might come from the evolutionary development of a dual human reproductive strategy.
  • This drive to fall in love and form a pair bond evolved for an ecological reason: to rear our children as a team.
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Women dress modestly to avoid aggression from other women, study suggests

Attractive women are especially likely to dress modestly, but only in certain scenarios.

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  • Psychologists have long studied male intrasexual aggression, but women's is relatively understudied.
  • Past research shows that women tend to be more aggressive toward women who are attractive or who display signs of sexual permissiveness.
  • The results of a new study suggest that women make strategic decisions on what to wear in order to minimize aggression from other women.
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evolutionary psychology psychology relationships sex women