- The women were shown images of breasts that had been manipulated to increase their size and sagging.
- They were more likely to be aggressive when faced with images of women with large breasts.
When it comes to body image, having larger breasts is something many women can dream of.
But be careful what you wish for: those who boast about having larger cups tend to be the targets of greater aggression.
This is according to a new study led by researchers at Texas A&M International University.
The study suggests that this aggression may be motivated by the perception that women with large breasts are a threat.
“Given the high importance men place on women’s breast morphology, especially size, women, in general, pay attention to this factor,” the team wrote in the study.
When it comes to body image, many women dream of having bigger breasts. But be careful what you wish for, as those who boast about having bigger breasts tend to be more bullied (file image)
In their study, the team set out to understand whether or not breast size influences aggression among women.
In their study, published in SexesThe team, led by Ray Garza, explained: ‘Physical traits desired by men may drive intrasexual competition tactics in women.
‘We tested the role of breast morphology in the likelihood that women will resort to rival derogatory tactics, such as verbal and indirect aggression.’
The team recruited 114 women, who were shown various images of women’s breasts that had been manipulated to both enhance their size and reduce their sagging (also known as ptosis).
It is important to note that the images only included a view from the bottom of the neck to the top of the woman’s torso, meaning the face was not taken into consideration.
For each image, participants were asked how likely they were to be “indirectly aggressive” toward the woman.
“For example, maliciously gossiping about her, spreading harmful rumors about her, or attempting to exclude her socially,” the team explained.
An analysis of the results revealed a “significant” link between aggression and breast size, but not sagging.
The team recruited 114 women, who were shown various images of women’s breasts that had been manipulated to both increase their size and decrease their sagging (also known as ptosis). Importantly, the images only included a view from the bottom of the neck to the top of the woman’s torso, meaning the face was not taken into account.
An analysis of the results revealed a “significant” link between aggression and breast size, but not sagging.
“Breast size contributed to rival denigration toward other women, and women with larger breasts were more likely to be victims of verbal and indirect aggression,” they said.
Although the reason for these findings is unclear, the team suggests that aggression may be due to the perception that women with larger breasts pose a greater threat.
“It has been suggested that women have psychological mechanisms that drive them to compete with other women, mainly in the mating arena,” they explained.
‘If men find women with large, non-ptotic breasts attractive, women may be more attentive to those with such breast morphology and adopt tactics to mitigate the risk of competition posed by such women.’
As for why sagging didn’t seem to influence aggression, the researchers say this may be due to the participants’ age.
‘Breast ptosis is often a marker of a woman’s age, as ptosis increases as a woman ages, they concluded.
‘Our participants were young and might pay more attention to breast size as it is easier to discern among women their age compared to levels of sagging; therefore, they do not view women as competitive rivals based on variations in ptosis.’