Yes, babies show a preference for attractive faces. Research indicates that even newborns exhibit this preference.
Evidence of Baby's Aesthetic Preference
Studies have demonstrated that babies, even within hours of birth, tend to gaze longer at faces considered attractive by adults. This suggests an innate ability to perceive and prefer certain facial features associated with beauty. Scientists leverage the fact that babies tend to look in the direction of what interests them most to conduct these experiments. For example, Alan Slater and colleagues at the University of Exeter showed paired images of faces to babies and observed their gaze duration. This preference for attractive faces has been observed across multiple studies, demonstrating a consistent finding. [Source: Newscientist.com, "Babies prefer to gaze upon beautiful faces"]
This isn't to say babies have a fully developed concept of beauty as adults understand it. Their preference is likely based on innate, evolutionary factors—faces considered attractive often possess features associated with health and good genes. This preference is likely a survival mechanism passed down through evolution. [Source: Numerous studies cited across provided links demonstrating infant preference for attractive faces.]
While parents often perceive their own babies as the most beautiful, objective studies show that infants do display a preference for conventionally attractive faces. The notion of beauty evolves and differs across cultures, but the innate preference seen in infants suggests a biological basis for aesthetic appreciation from a very young age. [Source: Various Quora and Reddit links discussing parental biases and perceptions of infant beauty.]
