Requiring standards of attractiveness

As in nearly all primates, an important element of a leader's persuasive powers lies in the basic physiology of his or her face. In one study, college students were asked to rank the 'dominance' of more than 3000 pictures from the yearbook of the 1950 graduating class at the Military Academy at West Point, USA. In nearly every instance, those cadets who went on to become generals were those who were judged to have the most dominant-looking face. The same source of research provides the conclusion that all around the world, facial features that are most associated with leadership -- thin lips, eyes that are small in proportion to the face and receding hairlines -- are also judged to be the most attractive in males but not in females.