# The Nature of Androgynous Attraction **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 10, 2009, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613 "2009-09-10T22:03:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fastidiots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fastidiots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fastidiots)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/1 "2009-09-10T22:03:27Z")
What is it that makes people like [David Bowie](http://static.open.salon.com/files/david_bowie_101249577773.jpg) or [Bill Kaulitz](http://www.foroswebgratis.com/imagenes_foros/5/5/6/4/2/633161bill%20kaulitz.jpg) attractive to the general audience? The latter being the best looking straight man I’ve ever seen. I’ll presume that Bill’s band [Tokio Hotel](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokio_Hotel) has a fanbase consisting largely of pubescent females which leads me to my question. What is it that draws these fans to adore androgynous icons? Sexual attraction? Shared experience? Mutual interest in the feminine appearance? I’m a straight male, though I think I appreciate the male form more than most men typically would - or admit. What puzzles me is the young girls though. ---
**Author:** ![Electric\_Warrior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Electric\_Warrior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electric_Warrior)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/2 "2009-09-10T22:05:32Z")
I personally find Bill Kaulitz very odd looking but I love the androgynous look in general. I think it’s attractive because androgynous men are usually clean cut and look sharp, as well as being _beautiful_ - that is, appealing in a purely aesthetic sense. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/3 "2009-09-10T22:07:32Z")
I’m female and I don’t think Bill Kaulitz is all that attractive. David Bowie is, but when he’s not overly made up or anything, he doesn’t look all that androgynous to me. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Awesome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Captain\_Awesome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Awesome)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/4 "2009-09-10T23:38:06Z")
Androgynous characteristics may be an indicator of long-term relationship satisfaction, emotional intelligence, sexual competence and flexibility and adaptability conducive to a satisfactory sexual relationship ([Safir _et al_. 1982](http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a789563499); [Green and Kenrick 1994](http://psp.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/20/3/244)). ---
**Author:** ![Neverender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/848f3c/32.png) [@Neverender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neverender)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/5 "2009-09-11T00:59:46Z")
> [@tvvat](#): > > I’m a straight male, though I think I appreciate the male form more than most men typically would - or admit. What puzzles me is the young girls though. I think I’m in a similar position. To be honest, I find androgynous men to be kind of sexually confusing, I probably wouldn’t, but there isn’t that outright ‘no’ with more masculine men. I think it’s the beauty aspect. Seems to me also that more feminine men are getting more and more attention these days, I wonder if it’s it’s societal change i.e men don’t need to be ‘manly men’ anymore to be accepted, and girls are more exposed to them these days, thus there’s just more chance for them to see an androgynous man and get attracted? I think I’d be comfortable looking androgynous, especially with the stereotypically figure. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/6 "2009-09-11T01:00:33Z")
> [@tvvat](#): > > What is it that makes people like [David Bowie](http://static.open.salon.com/files/david_bowie_101249577773.jpg) or [Bill Kaulitz](http://www.foroswebgratis.com/imagenes_foros/5/5/6/4/2/633161bill%20kaulitz.jpg) attractive to the general audience? The latter being the best looking straight man I’ve ever seen. I’ll presume that Bill’s band [Tokio Hotel](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokio_Hotel) has a fanbase consisting largely of pubescent females which leads me to my question. What is it that draws these fans to adore androgynous icons? Sexual attraction? Shared experience? Mutual interest in the feminine appearance? > > I’m a straight male, though I think I appreciate the male form more than most men typically would - or admit. What puzzles me is the young girls though. Well, if you’re talking about androgynous looking men then most of the physical characteristics that might be described as “feminine” could just as easily be called “youthful”. Compares to adult men, boys tend to be slimmer, less hairy, and have more delicate facial features. That usually changes in their mid-to-late teens when their testosterone production goes into high gear, but some guys are late bloomers and some are just boyish looking. I’m not really familiar with Tokio Hotel, but in the photo you linked to Bill Kaulitz reminds me more of a 14 year old boy than an adult woman. If most Tokio Hotel fans are teen girls then of course they’re going to be attracted to teen boys, and a 20 year old rock star who still _looks_ like a teenager might understandably be even more attractive than an actual high school freshman due to his presumably greater maturity and sophistication and his certainly greater wealth and fame. ---
**Author:** ![Fastidiots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fastidiots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fastidiots)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-nature-of-androgynous-attraction/509613/7 "2009-09-11T01:20:00Z")
> [@Captain\_Awesome](#): > > Androgynous characteristics may be an indicator of long-term relationship satisfaction, emotional intelligence, sexual competence and flexibility and adaptability conducive to a satisfactory sexual relationship ([Safir _et al_. 1982](http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a789563499); [Green and Kenrick 1994](http://psp.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/20/3/244)). I had never considered this. Excellent point.