Forget expensive designer clothes, a simple T-shirt could be the best way to capture a woman's heart.

 

Wearing a plain white short-sleeved top with a large black letter T printed on the front can make a man up to 12 percent more attractive, scientists claim.

 

Researchers suggest it creates an illusion（错觉） that broadens the shoulders and slims the waist, producing a more V-shaped body – a sign of masculinity（男子气，刚毅）.

 

The best results were observed in participants who were most out of shape, with already toned individuals only gaining a slight increase in perceived attractiveness.

 

In contrast, all those wearing a top with an inverted¹ 'T' - with the bar running around their waist - were deemed up to 12 percent less attractive.

 

It suggests shifting the focus to a man's gut² reduces his desirability.

 

The team said a waist-to-chest ratio (WCR) of between 0.7 and 0.8 - where the shoulders are around 20 percent broader than the hips³ - was seen as the ideal.

 

Nottingham Trent University psychologist Dr Andrew Dunn said: ‘The wider barred 'T' seems to emphasize the upper chest when upright, which accentuates⁴ men's 'optimum' shape. The opposite happens when inverted.

 

'WCR is one of just a number of body measures that humans use to judge attractiveness and health.

 

'Our ability to detect, process and use this information appears to be implicit⁵.

 

'The brain and sensory⁶ mechanism⁷ underpinning⁸ this are probably evolved and are almost certainly managing what we look for and how we respond.

 

'The effect was most notable for normal men with a waist as wide as their shoulders.

 

Whereas with those who are already in good shape, the T was simply amplifying⁹ the body shape they already had, so the benefit was less marked.'

 

The study involved showing 30 female undergraduates, aged¹⁰ 18 to 25, images of five different male body shapes and asked them to mark their perceived attractiveness and health.

 

Each male model wore a plain white t-shirt with no T, and with an upright and inverted T-illusions of varying shapes and sizes.

 

The results showed that upright T-illusions increased attractiveness and health perceptions. Dr Dunn said the horizontal bar on the T-shirt had to be as equal or longer than the vertical¹¹ bar for optimum effectiveness.

 

He said: 'Clearly there are individual tastes and preferences, but we can see here how fashion could have an implicit positive or negative effect on perceived attractiveness and health.

 

'It suggests that you can use this kind of optical illusion that artists and fashion designers use all the time to tap into our basic sensory psychology¹².'

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