Apparently good looks go a long way when it comes to making a first impression.
According to a study at the University of St Andrews, people who were perceived attractive were also ranked more intelligent, The Independent reports.
Sean N. Talamas and his team of researches investigated the connection by taking photos of 100 students at the university, and then collecting each student’s academic data to form the basis of connections between perceptions of intelligence, and reality.
They then showed the photos to Amazon, who rated each face based on perceived intelligence, academic performance and conscientiousness.
The result? People who were thought to be good looking were also rated as being more intelligent, even though their grades had no connection between their attractiveness and intellect.
The author of the study said:
Facial impressions have consistently been shown to influence our opinions as well as bias decisions in politics, leadership, law, parental expectations and punishments on children, military rank promotion, and teacher evaluations. Clearly, the power of first impressions is critical and has repeatedly been shown to influence our opinions about a person.
These findings emphasize the misleading effect of attractiveness on the accuracy of first impressions and competence, which can have serious consequences in areas such as education and hiring.
The implications of these findings, though, are actually pretty serious in the real world.
But, on the other hand, would we really be fooled into believing Joey Essex is smart?
