Everyone’s heard of the mildly bizarre notion that some women are attracted to men who resemble their fathers. But new research takes that idea a couple creepy steps farther by suggesting that some are subconsciously sexually attracted to their own brothers.
A study published in the scientific journal Evolution and Human Behavior showed female participants pictures of a woman, her partner, her brother and three random men. Without being given any information on whether the people were related or not, they were then asked to rate them on facial similarity.
The findings indicated that there was clear evidence of similarities in the photographs of a woman’s partner and her brother.
“[Our findings] were not a rule or true of every woman,” lead researcher Tamsin Saxton told the Independent. “But we do find that, at levels greater than chance, partners did show some subtle resemblance to the women’s brothers.”
The cringe meter’s going haywire over here!