Abigail Fricke

Mrs. Stanford

ENG 231

17 May 2019

Beauty In Numbers

During the fifth season of the American comedy television series, ​The Office​, the staff at

Dunder Mifflin Paper Company spend the entirety of an episode trying to decide if actress,

Hilary Swank, is “hot” or not (Dils 2019). Although it’s, in part, a direct reflection of this

generation’s need to objectify female actresses, the plotline of this episode sparks an important

question: What makes someone attractive? Although the natural features of an individual’s face

certainly play a role, recent work has revealed that the “cheerleader effect” has a great influence

when determining if a person, specifically a woman, is perceived as attractive (Dils 2019). First

introduced in an episode of ​How I Met Your Mother, t​ he “cheerleader effect” is the phenomenon

that individual faces only appear attractive when presented in a group rather than when presented

alone (Walker 2014). It’s proposed that this phenomenon transpires at a continuous level, as it

derives from the interaction between ensemble coding in the visual system and the properties of

average faces (Walker 2014). Since they’ve learned this, women have begun using the

“cheerleader effect” to their advantage by going out more frequently with their friends and

posing for more group photos online. Despite this, the concept and employment of the

“cheerleader effect” has negative consequences, as it increases sexism and body dysmorphia

within American society.

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Within this essay, the “cheerleader effect” will be frequently compared to sexism and

body dysmorphia. Therefore, it’s crucial to describe what the “cheerleader effect” is and how it’s

able to work. The “cheerleader effect”, as previously mentioned, is the phenomenon that

individual faces appear more attractive when presented in a group rather than when presented

alone (Walker 2014). It’s proposed that this phenomenon transpires at a continuous level, as it

derives from the interaction between ensemble coding in the visual system and the properties of

average faces (Walker 2014). Our visual system automatically computes a summary of grouped

objects, such as an array of dots:

​ ikipedia.com
Ebbinghaus Illusion, W

As we see groups of objects like this, our visual system automatically summarizes information

such as their average size, average location, and even average facial expression (May 2013). So,

when a group of women are viewed by an outside party, that outside party automatically
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summarizes that groups average attractiveness. Once this occurs, that outside party takes that

average attractiveness and uses it to view any one part of that group as more similar to the

average attractiveness itself (May 2013). For example, when an individual sees a collection of

dots, they remember any one of those dots as being larger or smaller based on the average size of

the collection of dots. So, a larger dot will be interpreted as smaller if the average size of the rest

of the dots is small, and a smaller dot will be interpreted as larger if the average size of the rest of

the dots is large (Taylor 2017). Going back to the outside party, as they looked at any one

woman in the group, they interpreted her attractiveness as similar to the average attractiveness of

all the women. So, ultimately, when the outside party looked at any one women in the group,

they likely found her more attractive because their visual system made them perceive her as

more average looking (Taylor 2017). As humans tend to find average faces more attractive than

individual faces, this illusion proves the “cheerleader effect” to be real (May 2013).

As previously mentioned, the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” has

negative consequences. These negative consequences include increasing rates of sexism and

body dysmorphia within American society. This will be an idea that is discussed thoroughly

within this essay, so once again, it’s crucial that those two terms be described. Sexism is

prejudice or discrimination based on one’s sex or gender, particularly towards women or girls

(Masequesmay 2019). Although it’s roots are unknown, the term “sexism” developed from the

“second-wave” feminism of the 1960s through the ‘80s and was most likely modeled after the

civil rights movement term “racism” (prejudice or discrimination based on race) (Masequesmay

2019). Body dysmorphia, on the other hand, is a mental disorder where a person can’t stop

thinking about one or more perceived imperfections or defects in their appearance (​BDD 2017)​.
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These imperfections or defects are either extremely minor or not even observable to other

people. Body dysmorphia was first developed by an Italian psychiatrist, Enrico Morselli, as

“dysmorphophobia”, in 1891 (​BDD 2017)​. However, the term “body dysmorphia” was coined in

1987 by an unknown source and has remained the label for this disorder ever since (​BDD 2017)​.

By providing fundamental information on the “cheerleader effect” as well as sexism and body

dysmorphia, these two paragraphs hoped to provide cognizance about what the rest of this essay

will pertain to.

It has long been proposed that sexism can manifest in an abundance of forms: Insults

masquerading as jokes, role stereotyping, and unwarranted gender labeling are just a few

examples (M.C.C. 2010). When examining the “cheerleader effect”, it can be noticed that its

concept and employment is an example of a form of sexism called the “preoccupation with

physical appearance” (M.C.C. 2010). As stated in the article, “We Set The Tone: Eliminating

Everyday Sexism”, this form of sexism is associated with comments about a woman’s

“appearance, body shape, size, physical characteristics or dress over skill” (M.C.C. 2010). It is

most clearly shown that the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” are an example

of this type of sexism when examining the episode of ​How I Met Your Mother​ where this

phenomenon was first introduced. Within the episode, the main character, Barney Stinson,

introduces the “cheerleader effect” by saying that it’s “...when a group of women seems hot but

only as a group”. As this statement is a broad generalization about the only way a group of

women can appear attractive, it already proves the concept of the “cheerleader effect” to be a

form of the “preoccupation with physical appearance” sexism (M.C.C. 2010). However, as

Barney furthers his introduction by saying that “(these women) seem hot, but take each one of
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them individually? Sled dogs.”, he showcases that the employment of the “cheerleader effect” is

also a form of this sexism. This idea can clearly be understood as calling a group of women “sled

dogs” is a straightforward example of a comment about a woman’s “appearance, body shape,

size, physical characteristics or dress over skill” (M.C.C. 2010). As shown through the analysis

of these two examples, the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” can clearly be

seen as an example of the form of sexism called the “preoccupation with physical appearance”.

Most men will not take the time to fully describe the concept of the “cheerleader effect” nor

figure out a better way to relate it back to the appearance of a group of women. As a result,

comments similar to those Barney said are becoming increasingly popular within today’s society.

Thus, the amount of sexism and sexist behavior related to the concept and employment of the

“cheerleader effect” is also becoming more popular and steadily increasing (Masequesmay

2019).

Another prevalent issue that is increasing as a result of the concept and employment of

the “cheerleader effect”, is the number of women who develop a mental disorder called body

dysmorphia. Defined by “Mayoclinic.org”, body dysmorphia is a mental disorder where a person

can’t stop thinking about one or more perceived imperfections or defects in their appearance. It is

most clearly shown that the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” can lead to this

mental disorder when examining what causes it and what its most common symptom is.

Although it is not known specifically what causes body dysmorphia, doctors are beginning to

think that it’s the combined result of environmental factors (Mayo Clinic 2016). These

environmental factors could range anywhere from the culture of American society all the way to

negative social evaluations of one's appearance through public, as well as social, media
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experiences (Mayo Clinic 2016). When taking this notion into comparison with the concept and

employment of the “cheerleader effect”, it can be seen that this phenomenon’s increasing

popularity, as well as its ability to be used as a scapegoat to make negative social evaluations

about a woman’s body or appearance (for example, calling a group of women "sled dogs"), can

very well be a cause of body dysmorphia. This being said, a very common symptom related to

the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” is known to appear once a person has

been diagnosed with body dysmorphia. This symptom is most often known as the constant

comparison of one person’s appearance to others around them (Hofstra 2017). As the

“cheerleader effect” relates to a continuous observation that categorizes someone as attractive or

unattractive based on who they surround themselves with, women who learn about this

phenomenon will often begin to compare themselves to other women around them. A survey of

twenty-five women illustrates this idea, as 96% of them answered “yes” when asked if they think

that they would eventually compare themselves to the other women around them after learning

about the “cheerleader effect” (Fricke 2019). In fact, one of them commented on the idea, saying

“When I'm with a group of women, I feel less attractive because I see women who are much

skinnier than I am... I think (the cheerleader effect) could lead to me comparing myself to them

because I do right now”(Fricke 2019). After examining the survey question results, as well as the

comment provided by one survey responder, it can be seen that the concept and employment of

the “cheerleader effect” can lead many young women to mirror the most common symptom of

body dysmorphia. Therefore, as the number of young women who learn about the "cheerleader

effect" increases, the amount of them who develop body dysmorphia will as well (Mayo Clinic

2016).
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While the “cheerleader effect” has been proven to increase sexism and body dysmorphia

within American society, some might argue that fact as insignificant when compared to the fact

that the phenomenon also increases someone’s level of attractiveness (March 2018). When

examining the standards of American society, it can be seen that this argument is often supported

by the idea that being attractive has extensive benefits (Hamblin 2017). This notion can be

proven accurate when recognizing the fact that attractive people can make upwards of three to

four percent more than unattractive people (Grace 2018). Additionally, it is said that someones

ability to be seen as likable and trustworthy also grow if they are attractive (Alpharetta 2018).

Furthermore, some would even go as far as to say that attractive people are more intelligent than

unattractive people (Alpharetta 2018). Although these things can be increased by the

“cheerleader effect” and make being attractive seem advantageous, the extremely negative

consequences brought on by sexism and body dysmorphia actually prove them to be trivial when

in comparison. These negative consequences relate to mental health, most notably suicide. As its

rate among young girls and women is higher as a result of sexism and body dysmorphia, suicide

can be put on the list of factors that the “cheerleader effect” indirectly increases. Regardless, as

shown in an interview with The Telegraph, the most foreseeable reason behind suicide being the

leading cause of death of women ages fifteen to nineteen is sexism (Valenti 2015). However, if a

woman isn’t subjected to sexist behavior, she can be influenced by body dysmorphia to commit

suicide, as 80% of individuals with body dysmorphia experience lifetime suicidal ideation and

24% to 28% have attempted suicide (Phillips 2007). Considering that a woman's life is more

important than her reaping the benefits of her appearance, all of this evidence proves the

“cheerleader effect’s” ability to increase sexism and body dysmorphia as more significant than
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its ability to increase someone's attractiveness. These issues that develop beyond the surface also

reinstate the idea that the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” are exclusively

negative.

Now that it has been proven that the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect”

increase sexism and body dysmorphia within American society, it is now important that a

concrete solution be put in place to combat the issues those factors cause. Independent from the

“cheerleader effect” itself, there are solutions to manage sexism and body dysmorphia. The

solutions to manage sexism come in a three-fold process of knowing what is being dealt with,

finding ways to get everyone to acknowledge its presence, and then, setting the tone based on

what is found (M.C.C. 2010). On the other hand, there is no known solution for body

dysmorphia but early diagnosis, therapy, and medication have proven to limit its symptoms

(Hofstra 2017). When putting these things in correlation with the concept and employment of the

“cheerleader effect”, a solution that could work for both of these factors is hard to find.

However, research suggests that simply teaching women at a young age how to deal with the

consequences of sexism and body dysmorphia could help prevent them from developing it

(Hofstra 2017). This teaching could come in a wide variety of forms such as group discussions

with an educated leader, videos that illustrate how and where one could spot these issues, and

pamphlets that clearly state how one could overcome sexism or body dysmorphia. As there is no

way to fully remove sexism and body dysmorphia from American society, this “teaching” is the

solution that would be the most successful in the long term. This is because it would allow young

girls to learn about these issues, while also learning about how they can deal with them if they

were to face them in the future. Lastly, it is vital that popular tv shows, such as How I Met Your
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Mother, change the way they use their platform to get information to their viewers. As How I

Met Your Mother reached a whopping 12.9 million viewers during its most popular episode, the

show was able to not only reach a gigantic number of people, but it was also able to influence

them with what it chose to put into production (Walker 2014). Considering this, How I Met Your

Mother and other shows just like it, need to stop spreading harmful information about

phenomenon’s like the “cheerleader effect”. Instead, they should use their platforms to spread

awareness about the issues caused by the “cheerleader effect” and ways that their viewers can

cope with them if they are struggling. Doing so would further promote the solution for sexism as

well as body dysmorphia. Furthermore, it would help to make those issues minuscule and a thing

of the past.

As American society becomes increasingly obsessed with image, the question of what

makes someone attractive often comes to mind. Although the natural features of an individual’s

face certainly play a role, recent work has revealed that the “cheerleader effect” has a great

influence when determining if a person, specifically a woman, is perceived as attractive (Dils

2019). First introduced in an episode of ​How I Met Your Mother, ​the “cheerleader effect” is the

phenomenon that individual faces only appear attractive when presented in a group rather than

when presented alone. It’s proposed that this phenomenon transpires at a continuous level, as it

derives from the interaction between ensemble coding in the visual system and the properties of

average faces (Dils 2019). Although its ability to make someone attractive makes the

“cheerleader effect” seem advantageous, its concept and employment prove that it has negative

consequences, as it increases sexism and body dysmorphia within American society. It was most

clearly shown that the concept and employment of the “cheerleader effect” increase these issues
 Fricke 10

within American society when examining the episode of ​How I Met Your Mother​ where this

phenomenon was first introduced. Furthermore, it was most clearly shown that the concept and

employment of the “cheerleader effect” can lead to body dysmorphia when examining what

causes it and what its most common symptom is. All of the issues surrounding these are ones that

can be fixed with the simple act of teaching women at a young age how to deal with the

consequences of sexism and body dysmorphia could help prevent them from developing it

(Hofstra 2017). This teaching could come in a wide variety of forms such as group discussions

with an educated leader, videos that illustrate how and where one could spot these issues, and

pamphlets that clearly state how one could overcome sexism or body dysmorphia. Additionally,

it is important that tv shows, such as ​How I Met Your Mother,​ begin using their platform to

spread awareness about the issues caused by the “cheerleader effect” and ways that their viewers

can cope with them if they are struggling. Doing so would not only further promote the solution

for sexism as well as body dysmorphia but it would help to make those issues minuscule and a

thing of the past. Although this solution may seem simple, the road to truly making it a reality

will be one with much discrimination, hardship, and struggle. Regardless, it is something that

still must be done because, as the famous quote reads, ​“Being attractive isn’t everything.”

Works Cited

Alpharetta, Georgia. “Yes, Being Beautiful Comes With Privileges.” ​The Odyssey Online,​ 27

Nov. 2018, www.theodysseyonline.com/beauty-privileges.

BDD. “History of Body Dysmorphic Disorder.” ​BDD​, 2017,

bddfoundation.org/resources/history-of-bdd/.
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Dils, Alexia T. ​The Temporal Cheerleader Effect: Attractiveness Judgments ...​2015,

pdfs.semanticscholar.org/6e24/91b5c7b87cd9099d588d8fd29e6a96be03a4.pdf.

Ebbinghaus Illusion​. 5 Mar. 2019.

Evita March, Lecturer of Psychology. “Yes the 'Cheerleader Effect' Is Real – and You Can

Make It Work in Your Favour.” ​The Conversation,​ 19 Sept. 2018,

theconversation.com/yes-the-cheerleader-effect-is-real-and-you-can-make-it-work-in-your

-favour-92501.

Fricke, Abby C. “Survey of 25 Women .” Canton, Ohio, 14 May 2019. The question asked

was "After learning about the "cheerleader effect", do you think that you will eventually

compare yourself to those who you surround yourself with?"

Grace, Cheryl. “Yes, Attractive People Can Earn More.” ​Ladders,​ 10 Oct. 2018,

www.theladders.com/career-advice/yes-attractive-people-can-earn-more.

Hamblin, James. “Cheerleader Effect: Why People Are More Beautiful in Groups.” ​The

Atlantic,​ Atlantic Media Company, 17 Jan. 2017,

www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/11/cheerleader-effect-why-people-are-more-b

eautiful-in-groups/281119/.

Masequesmay, Gina. “Sexism.” ​Encyclopædia Britannica,​ Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 7

Mar. 2019, www.britannica.com/topic/sexism.

May, Cindi. “The Cheerleader Effect.” ​Scientific American​, 3 Dec. 2013,

www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-cheerleader-effect/.

Mayo Clinic. “Body Dysmorphic Disorder.” ​Mayo Clinic,​ Mayo Foundation for Medical

Education and Research, 28 Apr. 2016,

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www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/body-dysmorphic-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc

-20353938.

M.C.C. “Eliminating Everyday Sexism | Australian Human Rights Commission.” ​The

Australian Human Rights Commission,​ 2010,

://www.humanrights.gov.au/about/news/eliminating-everyday-sexism.

Phillips, Katharine A. “Suicidality in Body Dysmorphic Disorder.” ​Primary Psychiatry​, U.S.

National Library of Medicine, 14 Dec. 2007,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2361388/.

Hofstra. “Student Counseling Services.” ​Hofstra​, 2017,

www.hofstra.edu/community/slzctr/stdcsl/stdcsl_bodydysmorphicdis.html.

Taylor, Madeline. “CogBlog – A Cognitive Psychology Blog.” ​CogBlog – A Cognitive

Psychology Blog » The Cheerleader Effect: How You Can Actually Seem More Attractive

With a Little Help From Your Friends,​ 12 Apr. 2017,

web.colby.edu/cogblog/2017/04/12/the-cheerleader-effect-how-you-can-actually-seem-mo

re-attractive-with-a-little-help-from-your-friends/.

Valenti, Jessica. “Worldwide Sexism Increases Suicide Risk in Young Women | Jessica

Valenti.” ​The Guardian,​ Guardian News and Media, 28 May 2015,

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/may/28/worldwide-sexism-increases-suicide-r

isk-in-young-women.

Walker, Drew, and Edward Vul. “Hierarchical Encoding Makes Individuals in a Group Seem

More Attractive - Drew Walker, Edward Vul, 2014.” ​SAGE Journals,​ 25 Oct. 2013,

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797613497969.
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