Study reveals which male dance moves women find most attractive

A study from Northumbria University, published in Biology Letters, concludes that the men rated best at dancing move their trunk, neck and knees more. The lowest-rated ones simply move their arms and legs repetitively.

Dance well and you'll attract more partners. Your grandmother already said so, and now it turns out science backs her up. A team of researchers at **Northumbria University** in the **United Kingdom** has identified which male movements tend to be considered more attractive by women. The study, led by evolutionary psychologist **Nick Neave**, was published in the scientific journal **Biology Letters**.

## Faceless avatars to isolate movement

The challenge was to separate the dance from the face. To achieve this, the participants' movements were turned into faceless digital avatars using 3D motion capture technology. This way, the evaluator could not see the dancer's physique or antiestéticatures, only the way they moved. The research showed that the highest-rated men displayed greater trunk mobility, neck flexibility and rhythmic knee movements. The lowest-rated ones, by contrast, tended to move only their arms and legs repetitively, keeping the rest of the body stiffer.

## Signals of health and coordination

According to the researchers, these movements would be subconsciously interpreted as indicators of good physical condition and athletic ability. Dancing would thus act as a biological signal of health, motor coordination and physical vigor. This is not the first time science has looked at dance through an evolutionary lens: the starting hypothesis is that certain gestures convey information about the state of the body without the need for words.

## What can be concluded

The study does not say there is a winning choreography, nor does it promise miracles on the dance floor. What it suggests is that attention focuses on the whole body, not on arm-waving. If this topic interests you for health or self-esteem reasons, it is worth remembering that this is a single piece of research and that any conclusions about yourself should be discussed with a professional.