When it comes to attraction, the eyes often tell the story. But what happens when the gaze itself tells us something deeper—about how people perceive and evaluate faces differently based on their cognitive traits?
In a new study published in Evolutionary Psychological Science, my colleagues and I explored whether individuals with high autistic traits differ from their neurotypical peers in what they find attractive in human faces—especially in relation to facial sexual dimorphism, or the extent to which a face appears stereotypically masculine or feminine.
Why Study Attraction and Autistic Traits?
Autism spectrum traits—present to varying degrees across the population—can influence how people perceive and process social cues. Previous research has shown that individuals with high autistic traits tend to process faces differently: They typically spend less time looking at the eyes, may struggle to identify emotions, and sometimes interpret social signals in non-standard ways.
But while researchers have long studied how people in general assess facial attractiveness, no one had asked: Do autistic traits shape what people find attractive in others’ faces—especially in terms of masculinity or femininity?
We conducted two complementary studies.
- Study 1 used eye-tracking to observe where people looked when rating faces as attractive. In our lab, we presented 40 face pairs—masculinized and feminized versions of the same face—to participants for five seconds each. The key question: Would individuals high in autistic traits prefer different types of faces, or focus on different facial regions, compared to those with low traits?
- Study 2, with a much larger and more gender-balanced sample, took the experiment online and removed the time pressure. Participants could take as long as they wanted to decide which faces they found more attractive.
What Did We Discover About Autism and Attractiveness Preferences?
In the lab setting (Study 1), we found that:
- All participants, regardless of trait level, looked more at the eyes than the mouth when judging facial attractiveness—but those with higher autistic traits spent less time looking at the eyes.
- When it came to masculinity preferences, both high and low trait participants showed similar patterns. Under time pressure (i.e., five seconds), there was no major divergence in what they found attractive.
In the “online and unhurried” task (Study 2), we discovered:
- More autistic traits were linked to a stronger preference for masculine features, especially in female faces.
- This preference wasn’t absolute, but the trend was clear: When given unlimited time to evaluate faces, individuals higher in autistic traits leaned more toward masculine facial structures than their low-trait counterparts.
Why Might Autistic Individuals Prefer Masculine Features?
The findings invite a deeper look into how gender identity, sexual orientation, and neurodiversity intersect.
Research increasingly shows that individuals with higher autistic traits are more likely to:
- Identify outside the gender binary.
- Express gender diversity.
- Endorse non-heterosexual orientations.
This diversity may shape how attraction is experienced. If gender identity is more fluid, the visual signals of masculinity and femininity may be interpreted through a different, more individualized lens. For instance, masculine features in a female face might not be off-putting—they may, in fact, be more relatable or appealing.
Furthermore, prior research has shown that individuals high in autistic traits often require more time to process emotional or social information. Study 2’s design—free of time pressure—might have allowed these preferences to emerge more clearly.
Rethinking Attraction and Neurodiversity
At a societal level, these findings suggest we need to broaden how we think about attraction. What counts as “attractive” is neither universal nor static. It’s influenced by cognition, identity, and the unique ways people experience the social world.
For those with high autistic traits, attraction may not hinge on mainstream ideals of beauty, but rather on subtle cues that resonate with their own internal experiences—whether it’s comfort, familiarity, or identity reflection.
