Ugly Friend Effect

Pre discussion questions

What do you think the ‘ugly friend effect’ means?

Do you think the man in this photo looks better because he is with beautiful models?

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What is the "ugly friend effect"?  It is when someone looks better because of the attractive people around them.

Before this was dismissed as an old wives' tale. But new research seems to  confirm the phenomenon as a scientific fact.

A study in the journal Psychological Science has shown that a person will rank higher on a scale of attractiveness when compared next to less attractive people than when judged in isolation.

Scientists at Royal Holloway University asked study members to rate the attractiveness of different faces shown in photographs.

The viewers were then told to re-judge the same faces after pictures of other less attractive people put next to them.

Once this was done, the attractiveness of the original faces increased from the first ranking.

Dr Nicholas Furl, who did the study, said that until now it has been understood that a person's level of attractiveness normally stays the same.

"If you saw a picture of George Clooney today, you would rate him as good-looking as you would tomorrow.

However, this study shows that how good we look is affected by the other people we are with.

Last year there was a movie called The Duff. “Duff” is  an acronym for a ‘chosen ugly friend’. The movie’s story is about a school-age girl who finds out that her prettier and more popular friends have her be with them to make them look more beautiful.

The new research follows other research into the effect on perceived attractiveness of appearing alongside people of the opposite sex.  That research found that married men are usually thought of as more attractive than unmarried men.

This is thought to happen because people appear more attractive when they are with an attractive person, or people, of the opposite sex. This is called – the "Hugh Hefner effect" Hug Hefner is the owner of Playboy magazine who is often in pictures with beautiful models.

Scientists believe this could be explained by evolution. In the animal kingdom, males with more females are often thought of as genetically superior.

Experiments with Grouse birds in the 1990s found that researchers were able to boost the popularity of a male simply by putting female birds around it.

Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they are used in the reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the dictionary depending on how they are used.

 The answers are below the table.

A=2, B-1, C=8, D=4, E=3, F=7, G=5, H=6

Some example sentences using the new words or phrases from the meaning of how they are used in the reading to help you understand better.

1.      His comment was dismissed as being untrue.

2.      I think it is an old wives' tale that wearing a hat will make you loose your hair.

3.      Psy’s song Gangnam Style was phenomenally popular.

4.      If you live in another country you could feel isolated from your friends.

5.      FYI has become a popular acronym for ‘for your information.’

6.      Our perception about a country or place is often changed after we go there.

7.      Your work is superior to last year – congratulations!

8.      You can boost your energy by eating healthy food.

Some questions using the new words/phrases. Try to use the words/phrases in your answer.

1.      Do you dismiss today’s story, or accept it? Why?

2.      What is an old wives' tale that you know?

3.      How do you feel about the phenomenon of the ‘ugly friend effect.’

4.      Do you  think that beautiful people can also feel isolated from others? (i.e. not accepted or others feel jealous in school)

5.      What is an acronym that you use a lot?

6.      Does today’s story change your perception about being with attractive people?

7.      Besides appearance, what other things might make a person look superior?

8.      If someone is not attractive, what other things can they do to boost their attractiveness?