Early developmental masculinization among boys: More prenatal testosterone action (assessed via 2D:4D) renders their faces perceived as masculine but not pretty or cute

The ‘organizational-activational hypothesis’ posits that the fetal environment has a lasting impact on offspring physical, cognitive, and behavioral phenotype. An established biomarker for human prenatal testosterone exposure is the second-to-fourth digit ratio (2D:4D). While related facial characteristics and their social perceptions have been investigated in young adults, studies focusing on younger or older age groups are scarce. Standardized facial photographs of 17 Austrian boys aged 4 to 11 years were each rated by 162 adults in Austria (78 female, 84 male) for masculinity, dominance, physical strength, maturity, independence, cuteness, and prettiness. Following high interrater agreement (Cronbach's alphas >0.96), average ratings per face were subjected to a principal component analysis. The first principal component (52 % var. expl.) correlated positively with the boys' age (r = 0.685), whereas the second principal component (37 % var. expl.) reflected organizational effects of prenatal androgen exposure (i.e. androgenization), as shown by a negative correlation with the boys' 2D:4D (r = −0.487). Geometric morphometrics was employed to extract the facial shapes corresponding to these two principal components. Overall, adults consistently attributed masculinity in line with prenatal testosterone exposure, whereby masculinity was assessed as neither pretty nor cute. In contrast to findings within adults, boys' face ratings of dominance and physical strength did not correspond with their masculinity assessments, but rather with the social attributions reflecting age-related developmental progress (maturity and independence). This adds an ontogenetic layer of complexity. Prenatal testosterone exposure influences the development of boys' facial features, which in turn even shape social stereotypes in adults.