Stand Upright to Impress – The Role of Body Posture in Perceptions of Attractiveness and Self-Esteem

Body posture represents an underexplored cue in social perception research, despite its potential to signal psychological states. To investigate predictions from the Embodied Emotion Theory, we examined whether body posture influences perceptions of attractiveness and self-esteem, and whether these perceptions serve as valid cues to self-reported self-esteem. First, individuals completed self-esteem measures and were photographed. Then, across three studies, observers rated photographs of these individuals (N = 108) displaying upright and slouched postures from profile and frontal viewing angles. Study 1 examined the correlations between posture angles and observer ratings using left-profile photographs. Study 2 extended this to right-profile and frontal views to distinguish posture alignment from symmetry effects. Study 3 employed a forced-choice experimental design to establish causal relationships. Results demonstrate a systematic preference for upright postures in forced-choice comparisons, with observers consistently selecting more upright over slouched postures as more attractive and indicative of higher self-esteem. However, while observers accurately judged participants’ self-esteem levels, no significant associations emerged between posture and attractiveness ratings in correlational analyses. Two unexpected findings emerged: only 13% of subjects naturally displayed upright posture, and mediation analysis revealed no relationship between posture presentation and actual self-reported self-esteem. These findings suggest that observers consistently use posture cues for social judgements and show strong preferences for upright postures. However, standard angular measurements may not capture the subtle posture information that observers naturally detect. Most subjects displayed slouched postures, yet observers consistently evaluated upright presentations more positively.