Smoothed average preference for self-resembling faces and estimated progesterone levels by day of the menstrual cycle.
I currently have an NSF International Fellowship to work with Dave Perrett on the effects of hormones across the menstrual cycle, during pregnancy, and influenced by oral contraceptives on preferences for self-resembling faces and voices.
The first paper from this project has been published in Hormones and Behavior. Preferences for self-resemblance are shown to track progesterone levels as estimated from subjects' self-reported menstrual cycle day and published average hormone levels.
The next step in this research is to directly measure hormone levels and preferences for self-resembling faces within subjects through the menstrual cycle. As oral contraceptive use and pregnancy also alter progesterone levels, we plan to look at preferences for self-resemblance in pregnant women and in pill users versus non-contracepting women.
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