Title

Physical Attractiveness Biases in Ratings of Employment Suitability: Tracking Down the "Beauty is Beastly" Effect

Authors

Authors

S. K. Johnson; K. E. Podratz; R. L. Dipboye;E. Gibbons

Comments

Authors: contact us about adding a copy of your work at STARS@ucf.edu

Abbreviated Journal Title

J. Soc. Psychol.

Keywords

APPLICANT SEX; JOB TYPE; GENDER; STEREOTYPES; DECISIONS; PERFORMANCE; APPEARANCE; JUDGMENTS; INTERVIEW; MANAGERIAL; Psychology, Social

Abstract

The "what is beautiful is good" heuristic suggests that physically attractive persons benefit from their attractiveness in a large range of situations, including perceptions of employment suitability. Conversely, the "beauty is beastly" effect suggests that attractiveness can be detrimental to women in certain employment contexts, although these findings have been less consistent than those for the "what is beautiful is good" effect. The current research seeks to uncover situations in which beauty might be detrimental for female applicants. In two studies, we found that attractiveness can be detrimental for women applying for masculine sex-typed jobs for which physical appearance is perceived as unimportant.

Journal Title

Journal of Social Psychology

Volume

150

Issue/Number

3

Publication Date

1-1-2010

Document Type

Article

Language

English

First Page

301

Last Page

318

WOS Identifier

WOS:000291853700005

ISSN

0022-4545

Share

COinS