The influence of partner appearance in the assessment of a person with obesity: an experimental study

Purpose This study analyzes whether knowing that a male with obesity has a romantic relationship with a normal weight woman improves impressions about him. Methods An online experiment was conducted with a sample of 3024 adult participants ( 1828 women and 1196 men) with a mean age of 36.11 (SD = 13.49). Each participant was shown two photographs: one of a male target with obesity and one of his female partner (who had either normal weight or obesity depending on the condition). The respondents' sex was added as a fixed factor into the analyses. Physical attractiveness was rated using an item with a scale ranging from 0 to 100. Competence, warmth, and morality were measured using a 17-item adjective list. Results The target was assessed as more attractive when he had a partner with normal weight (F(1, 3009) = 4.85, p =.028, n(2) =.002), and was also given higher scores for competence (F(1, 3009) = 4.93, p =.026, n(2) =.002), warmth (F(1, 3009) = 4.32, p =.038, n(2) =.001), and morality (F(1, 3009) = 11.16, p =.001, n(2) =.004). There was a significant interaction between partner weight and the respondents' sex for physical attractiveness, as the difference between the scores in each condition was only significant for women. Conclusion It is possible that women perceived that the male target who had a normal weight partner had a higher status or some hidden quality besides his physical appearance, and thus rated him as more attractive. Level of evidence Level I, experimental study.

Automated summary

This study found that when a male with obesity has a romantic relationship with a normal weight woman, he is perceived as more attractive, competent, warm, and moral. This effect is more pronounced among women.