Futurity.org » physical appearance

Facial blemishes hurt chance of landing job

Amy Hodges-Rice — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 15:10:15 +0000

RICE (US) — People with birthmarks, scars, and other facial disfigurements are more likely to receive poor ratings in job interviews, according to a new study.

The findings by researchers at Rice University and the University of Houston show that interviewers recalled less information about these candidates, which negatively impacted evaluations of the applicants.

Pretty is profitable: $250,000 on average

Tim Green-U. Texas — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 15:02:39 +0000

U. TEXAS-AUSTIN (US) — The best looking people earn an extra $250,000, on average, during their careers than the least attractive people and are more likely to remain employed, get promoted, and even secure loans.

Those are the findings detailed in a new book by University of Texas at Austin economist Daniel Hamermesh. The most comprehensive study to date of the issue, Beauty Pays makes an effort to quantify the economic impact of beauty—a powerful but often-ignored driver of personal earning power and corporate profits.

Life’s good when you’re good-looking

Tim Green-U. Texas — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 17:38:21 +0000

U. TEXAS-AUSTIN (US) — Beautiful people are generally happier than their unattractive counterparts. Economists say it’s largely because they get better jobs and marry successful people.

This holds true for both men and women and across different cultures, according to Daniel Hamermesh and Jason Abrevaya, economics at the University of Texas at Austin, who report their findings in a new paper published online by the German-based Institute for the Study of Labor.

Women post more photos on Facebook

Patricia Donovan-Buffalo — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 20:15:41 +0000

U. BUFFALO (US) — Women who use image and appearance as a basis for self-worth tend to post more photos of themselves online on social media sites like Facebook.

“The results suggest persistent differences in the behavior of men and women that result from a cultural focus on female image and appearance,” says Michael Stefanone, assistant professor of communication at the University at Buffalo, and author of a new study published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking.

Tan addicts worry about wrinkles, not cancer

Marla Paul-Northwestern — Tue, 18 May 2010 14:27:17 +0000

NORTHWESTERN (US)—Young women in a recent study were more likely to cut back on indoor tanning based on concerns about getting leathery, wrinkled skin, rather than worries about skin cancer.

“They’re not worried about skin cancer, but they are worried about getting wrinkled and being unattractive,” says June Robinson, a professor of dermatology at Northwestern University and senior author of a paper in Archives of Dermatology reporting the findings.

Virtual appearance matters to men

Cindy Fox Aisen-Indiana — Fri, 14 May 2010 21:15:48 +0000

INDIANA U. (US)—In a recent study, men’s decisions were strongly affected by certain appearance aspects of computer-generated women, such as jerky movements, while women’s decisions were not.

Virtual humans are increasingly taking on roles that were once reserved for real humans. The study by researchers at Indiana University showed how appearance, motion quality, and other characteristics of virtual characters can affect the moral and ethical decisions of their viewers.

Higher pay for CEOs who look the part

Laura Brinn-Duke — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 15:40:31 +0000

Duke business professors (L-R) John Graham, Manju Puri and Campbell Harvey submit themselves for judgment. Who looks more friendly, or more competent? The trio staged a corporate beauty contest and found that CEOs rated competent just by their appearance tended to have higher income. However, the study shows a CEO’s appearance has no effect on company profitability. (Credit: Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business)

DUKE (US)—By staging a corporate beauty contest, researchers have found that CEOs who appear competent earn more money than less competent-looking CEOs, even though appearance is not associated with measurable differences in company profitability.

Finance professors at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business paired photos of the CEOs of large and small companies with photos of non-executives with similar facial features, hairstyles, and clothing. They staged a variety of online experiments to ask nearly 2,000 participants to assess the photos.

First impressions sometimes say it all

Sam Gosling-U. Texas — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:17:35 +0000

This subject’s relaxed stance and smile indicate she’s agreeable, likeable, and higher in self-esteem. “In an age dominated by social media where personal photographs are ubiquitous, it becomes important to understand the ways personality is communicated via our appearance,” says psychologist Laura Naumann.

TEXAS-AUSTIN (US)—When it comes to communicating personality through appearance, first impressions do matter, according to new psychology research. Despite the crucial role of physical appearance in creating first impressions, until now little research has examined the accuracy of personality impressions based on appearance alone.

The findings by psychologists Laura Naumann of Sonoma State University and Sam Gosling of the University of Texas at Austin is available online and will be published in the December 2009 issue of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, cowritten with Simine Vazire (Washington University in St. Louis) and Peter J. Rentfrow (University of Cambridge).