Have you ever heard the saying, “Beauty is only skin deep?” What about the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover?”

Truth be told, those sayings are not accurate. Physical attractiveness is a major determinant in judging the liking of an individual. Psychological studies ( Sprecher & Duck, 1994; Collins & Zebrowitz, 1995) have found that people had a favorite opinion towards attractive individuals. The reality is that physical attractiveness is associated with positive affect, popularity and favorable treatment.

PROOF

Not convinced? Look at the justice system. A defendant’s likability is very important towards a favorable judgment. While common sense tells us that stereotypes and biases have no place in courthouses, the reality is that they do influence the outcome of cases (Dane, 1992). Many have supported the existence of disproportions in sentencing between attractive and non-attractive people. The business world is no different. Attractiveness has a direct relation to success in some jobs and definitely in some industries. Just look at your television shows, news anchors, and soap protagonists.

A good example of this bias is a study conducted by Pingitore et al. (1994). She recorded eight different simulated job interviews. There were three factors in each of the recordings: 1) nature of the job (sales or system - with a job where appearance is relevant), 2) Gender of the applicant and 3) weight of the applicant (normal weight or overweight). After watching one of the eight tapes, participants rated whether they would hire the person they just watched on the tape. What do you think the results were? Well, overweight applicants received a lower rate, especially females. What was interesting was that the nature of the job made no difference in the rating.

WHAT ABOUT US?

We all like to think that we do not experience such biases. The reality is that when you are looking for an individual that will have a direct impact in our life (e.g. partner, lover, doctor, etc) we prefer a YAVIS. The acronym YAVIS stands for Young, Attractive, Vocal, Intelligent, and Successful. This is part of our human nature. Since birth we have been exposed to this set of tendencies (that is why you’ve never seen a “Homeless Barbie” toy).

While we cannot change how people look, we can always change our views. It is important that we challenge our biases, and keep them in check.

Now, what do you think about these studies? Do you think Attractive people are more successful?

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