• France edition

Men stare at breasts, women at wedding rings: study

Published: 24 Nov 2011 09:28 GMT+01:00 | Print version
Updated: 24 Nov 2011 08:37 GMT+01:00

An eye tracking study by a French laboratory, conducted in seven countries, presented an image of an attractive woman to both men and women to discover where their eyes went.

While the study made the unremarkable discovery that men spend longer than women observing a woman's chest, it also found that women spend much longer looking at the wedding ring on the woman's finger.

The study was conducted by French company Miratech and used its eye tracking technology to track the eye movements of men and women when presented with the image.

Men look at the woman's chest for 37 percent longer than women, with French men spending longest observing this region. French men spent 2.7 times as long looking at the chest as British men.

Of the women, it was French and Danish women who spent the longest observing the woman's breasts; more than twice as long as their British and Spanish counterparts.

Women look at the ring on the woman's finger for 27 percent longer than the men, although French women had the shortest attention span for this. British women were the most attentive, spending 149 percent longer looking at this than British men.

Both men and women spent the longest period of time looking at the woman's face, although men tended to linger on the lips while women focused on the eyes.

At the end of the test, participants were asked to say what they thought of the young woman in the photo. 

While women found her "common and vulgar," men described her as "very attractive and sexy."



twitter.com/matthew_warren

Matthew Warren (news@thelocal.fr)

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

2012-05-29 16:59:48 by SockRayBlue
I thought the comment about men being perverts was most telling since women will automatically check out the competition. Men just want to assess a possible romp in the hay or closet or just about anywhere be it in private or public. Who cares just name a place. What wedding ring?
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Today's headlines
French ministers face grilling over tax scandal
Did any of these ministers know about Jerome Cahuzac's secret bank account? Photo: AFP

French ministers face grilling over tax scandal

High ranking ministers in the French government can expect a grilling in the coming days as an investigation into a tax fraud scandal got underway on Tuesday. The probe was set up after the former budget minister admitted having a secret bank account. READ () »

Weather men bring more bad news for France
Tourists walk under the rain at the feet of the Eiffel Tower on May 16, 2013 in Paris. Photo: Fred Dufour/AFP

Weather men bring more bad news for France

Hopes that France's long, hard winter would be followed by a warm, sunny spring have been well and truly washed out after a weekend of heavy rain and storms. The country's weather agency saying more bad weather is on the way. READ () »

French fugitive evades police in global manhunt

French fugitive evades police in global manhunt

The French Interior Minister reassured the public on Tuesday that a global operation involving French and international police was underway to track down fugitive Redoine Faid, who remains at large after blasting his way out of prison in April. READ () »

VIDEO: Fan charged over mass motorway brawl
Police try to interene as Frennch football hooligans fight running battles at a motorway toll plaza. Photo: Screenshot:France TV

VIDEO: Fan charged over mass motorway brawl

VIDEO: French police have charged a minibus driver carrying a group of Marseille football supporters who were involved in a mass brawl with fans of fierce rivals Lyon at a motorway toll plaza in the south of France at the weekend. READ () »

French nude Facebook protest nipped in the bud
Nude protest. A 1940 nude study by photographer Laure Albin Guillot, landed the Jeu de Paume art gallery in touble with Facebook earlier this year. Photo: Jeu de Paume

French nude Facebook protest nipped in the bud

Hundreds of French Facebook users bared all this week in a protest against the social media site’s strict censorship of nude photos. But the “Day of Nude” protest was cut short early when Facebook's photo police took swift action. READ () »

Gay marriage row moves on to France's town halls
Photo:AFP

Gay marriage row moves on to France's town halls

The French government may still be celebrating the victory of seeing its divisive gay marriage bill finally signed into law but the battle over the issue of same-sex unions in France now looks set to move from a national to a local level. READ () »

'Public safety is really bad in France'
French police outside the Novotel where €1 million worth of jewellery was stolen last week. Photo: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP

'Public safety is really bad in France'

An angry Chinese film producer had some harsh words to say about France this week, suggesting the country had a problem with public safety and arrogance after being the victim of a burglary at the Cannes Film Festival. READ () »

Unions threaten strike over English at unis
More English in universities would mean "French will be vandalized and become poorer", says journalist Bernard Pivot. Photo: Eric Feferberg/AFP

Unions threaten strike over English at unis

A proposal to introduce more courses in English and other foreign languages at French universities is set to be debated in parliament from Wednesday amid concerns it will undermine the country's soul and identity. READ () »

Brit admits to slaying his children in France
Picture taken on May 19th 2013 in Saint-Priest shows the apartment building where the bodies of two children were discovered with their throats cut at their father's place. Photo: Jeff Pachoud/AFP

Brit admits to slaying his children in France

A 48-year-old divorced Briton locked in a bitter custody battle confessed on Sunday that he had killed his two young children by slitting their throats near the eastern French city of Lyon. READ () »

Ancelotti praises 'great pro' Beckham
Photo: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP

Ancelotti praises 'great pro' Beckham

As Carlo Ancelotti paid fulsome tribute to the retiring David Beckham the Paris Saint Germain manager revealed an announcement on his own future may be imminent. READ () »

Highlights
Photo: M&S
Hollande's first year: Top 10 Nightmare Moments
Revealed: France's Best Restaurants in 2013
French Face of the Week
French politicians reveal their wealth
Ten best chat-up lines to use in French
Opinion
Ten most embarrassing mistakes to avoid in French
Fred Dufour/AFP
Photo: AP
Simone Ramella
Latest news from The Local in Sweden

More news from Sweden at thelocal.se

Latest news from The Local in Germany

More news from Germany at thelocal.de

Latest news from The Local in Switzerland

More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch

Latest news from The Local in Norway

More news from Norway at thelocal.no