How Our Brains View “Ugly”
New research has revealed an ugly truth – “our psychological bias against people and things we consider ugly is tied up in a built-in human response that’s designed to alert us to objects that may contain potentially harmful diseases.” In other words, our brains are hardwired to be judgemental of ugliness because we fear they may carry disease, according to IFLScience.com. “That is not to say that unattractive people are actually more likely to have diseases, but that an instinct kicks-in that overrides logic.”
Over five studies, a group of researchers from the University of Melbourne found that ugly human faces, ugly animals, and, to a lesser degree, ugly buildings “elicit disgust controlling for other avoidance-motivated emotional responses,” according to the abstract published in Social Psychological and Personality Science. This leads us to unconsciously treat people and things we consider unattractive as if they have a contagious disease.
The researchers believe this research can be beneficial in counteracting biases, whether they be directed at people or animals.
Read the full article written by the researchers here.
