Beauty Standards Quiz

Estimated Completion Time
1 min
Beauty Standards Quiz
Image: iStockphoto.com/Thinkstock

About This Quiz

We're often told that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. As it turns out, we all have a checklist, and they're all probably pretty similar. Take the quiz to learn more.
While curvy, plump women once reigned as the epitome of beauty, many women today feel pressure to be thin. Critics allege that this standard has caused countless eating disorders. How many women in the United States currently struggle with an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia?
5 million
10 million
15 million
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, approximately 10 million women -- and 1 million men -- suffer from anorexia and bulimia.

Pale skin was a must-have for women until which celebrity accidentally got a sunburn?
Rita Hayworth
Audrey Hepburn
Coco Chanel
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Coco Chanel is attributed with kick-starting the tanning craze when she came back from a vacation with a sunny glow. For decades, women longing to be beautiful avoided the sun at all costs.

Many women have a lipstick or compact in their purses. Which monarch would disapprove of this practice?
Queen Elizabeth I
Queen Victoria
King George VI
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Queen Victoria publicly declared makeup to be a vulgar thing, used only by prostitutes. During the Victorian era, modesty and simplicity in looks reigned.

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Which facial feature is thought to be the most important factor in beauty and attractiveness?
lips
eyes
symmetry
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It's all about the symmetry -- men and women with symmetrical faces are usually always ranked as most beautiful and attractive in laboratory settings (and real life).

Some scientists posit that we're attracted to people who exhibit "koinophilia." Which of the following words is the best synonym of koinophilia?
average
voluptuous
young
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

According to researchers, we seek out "average" looks, which means we want partners who don't have any strange or unique features. We might pursue these average people because we know they have healthy genes as opposed to mutant genes.

What is the No. 1 cosmetic procedure performed in the United States?
breast augmentation
abdominoplasty
eyelid surgery
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Society's appreciation for large, round breasts leads many women to pursue breast augmentation surgery.

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In 1991, Allure magazine asked readers which celebrity embodied the beauty ideal. Who did readers select?
Cindy Crawford
Christie Brinkley
Christy Turlington
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Blonde hair was a beauty standard for many decades, and Christie Brinkley embodied that all-American, blonde-haired, blue-eyed look.

Twenty years after appointing Christie Brinkley as the most beautiful celebrity, who did Allure readers select for the same honor in 2011?
Jennifer Aniston
Angelina Jolie
Heidi Klum
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Angeline Jolie is sitting pretty as the most beautiful celebrity these days, according to Allure readers, which suggests that all-American beauty no longer has to include blonde hair.

Men want to look good, too. What was the fastest growing cosmetic procedure for men in 2010?
facelift
liposuction
hair transplantation
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The number of facelifts performed on men increased 14 percent in 2010 over the previous year. That's a faster growth than procedures such as Botox or liposuction.

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"The Beauty Myth" is a book that claims impossible beauty standards are forced upon women as a sort of punishment for their growing equality to men in society. Who wrote this book?
Gloria Steinem
Naomi Wolf
Germaine Greer
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Naomi Wolf wrote the 1991 book that urged women to stop trying to meet these patriarchal standards.

You Got:
/10
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