People with downward head tilt look more dominant: Study

Researchers have found that tucking the chin and lowering the head by just 10 degrees makes people seem more dominating.

The study shows that facial features are not the only source of this information, we also draw social inferences from the head itself.

"We show that tilting one's head downward systematically changes the way the face is perceived, such that a neutral face, a face with no muscle movement or facial expression, appears to be more dominant when the head is tilted down," said researchers.

This effect is caused by the fact that tilting one's head downward leads to the artificial appearance of lowered and V-shaped eyebrows, which in turn elicit perceptions of aggression, intimidation and dominance.

Subtle shifts of the head can have profound effects on social perception, partly because they can have large effects on the appearance of the face, said the researchers.

For the findings, the team designed a series of studies to investigate whether the angle of head influences social perception, even when facial features remain neutral.