Students work on their thesis for weeks, months, sometimes years. Once completed, their work is often relegated to a dusty drawer. The Thesis Tales column is devoted to highlighting student research. In this first edition: Psychology student Djouke Oldenburg (21) studied the influence of the menstrual cycle on women's preference for male facial features.

Can you explain what your thesis is about in three sentences?

‘I looked at how a woman’s menstrual cycle affects her preference for male facial features. For example, do women tend to prefer typically masculine traits, such as a wider chin and narrower eyes at certain times during their cycle? I also looked at the role self-perceived attractiveness – i.e. how attractive you feel – plays in this.’

‘Women feel more attractive around ovulation than at other times during their cycle’

What challenges did you encounter?

‘I initially wanted to study the impact of the menstrual cycle on women’s sex life, but there are many limitations in conducting this kind of research. For example, you are not allowed to just ask someone about their sex life. That is why I eventually opted for a topic around mental wellbeing and female hormones, and from there I went on to preference for facial features.’

Where does your interest in this topic come from?

‘While looking for a topic, I came across the book Come as Yourself, by Emily Nagoski. It is a book about women’s sex lives, how their orgasms work, and how they come about. I found it very interesting, and I had already taken courses on this subject before.’

Do you now also apply this knowledge in your own life?

‘My research also revealed a difference between women who used hormonal contraception and those who didn’t. I am personally on the pill – and what you see is that the hormones of a person on the pill are incredibly flat. As a result, I cannot really apply the knowledge from my research to myself. I do talk about it a lot with my girlfriends.’

What was the conclusion of your research?

‘Women feel more attractive around ovulation than at other times during their cycle. During ovulation, they also prefer men with typically masculine facial features, while at other times they tend to prefer men with less pronounced masculine features. The main explanation is evolutionary: the idea is that male facial features are associated with higher genetic quality. The idea is that around ovulation, women choose men with the best genes for their potential offspring.’

But isn’t there also a social factor at work here? Surely there is a certain social consensus around what we consider more or less handsome?

‘Funny you should say that. Here’s the thing: evolutionarily speaking, we are all pretty much in agreement about what we consider handsome or ugly. Early humans who fell for external characteristics associated with higher genetic quality were able to reproduce better. As a result, we ended up with a large group of people who consider these traits to be beautiful, because the people who have them were able to reproduce better. Of course, everyone also has their own individual preferences when it comes to judging a person’s attractiveness.’

‘As a student, you have to be careful not to talk yourself down too much’

How did you experience the process of writing your thesis? Did it go smoothly?

‘When I found out I couldn’t work on my first topic of choice, I was disappointed. During the writing process, I ran into problems with my research methods. I ultimately figured it out with the help of SMAP, a statistics consultancy agency specialised in Psychology, and by watching a lot of YouTube videos. Finally, I find it a pity that I did not find a main effect; I had to substantiate that very extensively.’

What were the highlights of the writing process?

‘When the first results came in, I saw that women felt significantly more attractive around ovulation than at other times. I thought it was really cool to see that reflected in my results.
As a student, I think you have to be careful not to talk yourself down too much. It is actually special to design your own research study as a student; people often forget that.’

What can other students learn from your process?

‘It may be cliché, but try to choose a topic that you find interesting. If you are assigned a topic you don’t like, take the initiative and check what else is possible. You can often still redirect the topic to something you do have an interest in.’