After endless hours of arduous research, we are finally capable of conveying to you to magnificent realm of "Pupillometrics", as it was coined by one of its precursors back in 1975. His name was Eckhard Hess and he was a biopsychologist at the University of Chicago.
Pupillometrics refers to the study of pupil dilation. The pupil is the dark colored circle in the middle of your eye, surrounded by a larger one which usually has some sort of pigmentation, which is called the iris. Pupil dilation is defined as when this small dark colored circle grows in diameter from its normal size. This phenomenon occurs mainly when one enters a dark room (like a movie theater) to let more light come in. It may also happen when someone finds another person or thing attractive. Conversely, if the feelings are completely the opposite, the pupils may slightly contract. Other than that, some drugs may cause the pupil to dilate as well.The interesting fact about these studies is that it not only tells you how the person who has them is feeling, but also in general terms it was found that a person with dilated pupils is more attractive than one without them. In a study conducted by Hess himself, they gathered two sets of pictures. In one set, the pupils of each woman had been enlarged. In the other set, the pupils of each woman had been reduced. Results showed that men preferred the photos of the women with the enlarged pupil. When the same test was performed on a group of women, the results turned out the same.
According to Hess, pupil dilation is an involuntary action and cannot be consciously controlled. Probably when one thinks of a romantic setting, one may imagine a room with soft light and candles. The perfect context for pupils to dilate. Hence, the propitious environment to incite attraction.
Be careful though, pupils may also dilate if a hungry person stands in front of a grand buffet or is simply shown a picture of a delicious plate. So in the future, be cautious yet, attentive to this highly revealing trait all humans share.
