Metrosexual
Science
or, "Halo effects and the power of positive grooming"
By
James Whittall
MenEssentials President
Published December 2003
What are your plans for 2004?
If you're like a sizeable chunk of North America's male population, one of your New Year's resolutions will be to find a better paying job.
And why not? If your current work-for-peanuts career gives you the dry heaves, there are always bigger bags of nuts elsewhere.
But what if you actually love the work you're doing now?
Easy. Try a little psychology. Or, to put it in terms that are relevant to this web site: change your hairstyle; make a couple of adjustments to your business wardrobe; and wealth, happiness, and success could be yours.
I kid you not. There's a real science to grooming for success. Call it Metrosexual Science, if you must use the parlance of our times.
Of course, it doesn't hurt if you're handsome.
The Pitt Syndrome
Most people are aware the good looks are your ticket to Easy Street. If
this weren't true, unnaturally attractive guys like Brad Pitt would be
sponging urine off the floors of bus terminal men's rooms.
As gratifying as that may sound, how often does this really happen?
According to psychologist Dr. Robert Cialdini, not often at all. In his excellent book Influence: Science and Practice (fourth edition, Allyn & Bacon), Cialdini describes what social scientists call the "halo effect," a phenomenon that occurs when one positive characteristic strongly influences the way a person is viewed by others. Physical attractiveness is often such a characteristic.
Writes Cialdini: "Research shows that we automatically assign to good-looking individuals such favorable traits as talent, kindness, honesty, and intelligence. Furthermore, we make these judgments without being aware that physical attractiveness plays a role in the process."
As evidence, Cialdini quotes a study of the 1974 Canadian federal elections, which found eye-catching candidates received two and a half times as many votes as the electoral list scrags. Follow-up research showed 73 percent of the Canadians who voted in that election denied in the strongest possible terms that their preferences may have been influenced by physical appearance.
So, guys like Mr. Pitt bat their eyes and we instantly hand over the keys to the Ferrari — then come away thinking we got the better end of the deal. How's that for equal opportunity employment?
Grooming for Dollars
It's great, if you have all the right dimples in all the right
places. For those of us who don't — well, clothes do make the man.
In other words, it's time to dress for success.
This isn't as lame as it sounds. Dress for Success (the book, not the slogan) was published in 1975 by image consultant John Molloy to help groom new executives for positions of power. In it, Molloy analyzed clothing worn by the most successful and influential men of their day, and advised young businessdudes to emulate this style in their single-minded quest for the corner office.
Presumably, Molloy could hardly guess that his fashion insights would become the neo-conservative mantra of the early 1980s, or that it would inspire legions of identically suited corporate toadies with visions of gold-plated executive washrooms dancing in their greedy little heads.
But it did. To this day, "dress for success" remains the emblematic (if not clichéd) rallying cry of the chronic overachiever. And yet, employers still believe their selections are based on the applicant's character and ability.
From the 2003 Northern Illinois University Job Hunter's Guide:
Although a combination of factors will determine who gets a particular job, employer surveys consistently point to candidates' personal characteristics as being of primary importance. Communication skills, leadership qualities, attention to personal appearance, initiative, appreciation of hard work, and perseverance are examples of highly regarded qualities. Hiring appeal also increases with apparent qualities of enthusiasm, self-confidence, warmth, maturity, and sense of humor.
Baloney, says Cialdini. The halo effect is in full force in any business's HR department. In a 1990 study, good grooming accounted for more favorable hiring decisions than did job qualifications — even though the interviewers refused to admit that appearance had anything to do with their choices.
Indeed, economists who examined 1994 US and Canadian employment data found that well-groomed and attractively dressed individuals are paid an average of 12 to 14 percent more than their slumming co-workers.
12 to 14 percent. Right now, I'll bet you're looking at those ratty work jeans in a whole new light.
Hairstyles and Attitudes
As interesting as this news might seem, it pales in comparison to research
conducted by the Gender Communications Laboratory at Yale University on
the subject of hairstyles and first impressions.
Commissioned by Proctor & Gamble, the 2003 Yale study used women and men of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds to test the cause and effect relationship between "bad hair" and negative psychological consequences.
Yale's findings:
1) Men who wear their hair short and flipped up in front, a la Matt LeBlanc,
are perceived by others as confident, sexy, and self-centered.
2) Men with medium-length hair parted on the side are thought of as intelligent,
affluent, and narrow-minded. Great for the job interview, bad if you're
a civil liberties activist.
3) Long-haired Fabio types are received as least intelligent but most
good-natured. Bears of very little brain, as Winnie the Pooh might say.
So, the next time you visit your hair stylist, don't necessarily opt for the way cool 'do you saw on last week's Queer Eye. Take a few moments to consider the statement you want to make to your existing or prospective employer.
In Summary
Pitzer College offers these well-considered tips to guys who are hunting
for new work or mooching for pay raises:
• Wear a dark suit or dress pants with a blazer. Be sure they are
clean and pressed.
• For your dress shirt, the best color is white but pale pink, blue,
yellow and beige are also great choices.
• Ties should be coordinated with the suit coat. Avoid bright colors
or designs. A conservative stripe, paisley or small print is best.
• Wear dark dress shoes, shined. A conservative wing-tip or loafer
is preferable. Avoid sporty shoes and boots.
• Hair and fingernails should be clean and neatly groomed.
• Beards and moustaches must be closely trimmed, neat and clean.
• Use a moderate amount of light cologne, or wear no cologne at
all.
• Adapt to the culture of the business: conservative for straight-edge
employers and slightly rakish for left-of-center companies.
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