Feminine and attractive? Why are women when applying for Top positions at a disadvantage

psychologists have found out already 50 years ago that the beautiful people are attributed with positive character traits. "What is beautiful is good", conclu

Feminine and attractive? Why are women when applying for Top positions at a disadvantage

psychologists have found out already 50 years ago that the beautiful people are attributed with positive character traits. "What is beautiful is good", concluded us scientists in a post that appeared in 1972 in the "Journal of Personality and Social Psychology". They report an Experiment in which test participants photos of beautiful, average-looking and unattractive persons were presented. The test participants were asked to rate on a list of 27 personality characteristics of the people shown in each case on a scale of 1 to 6. The result was clear: The more Attractive were assigned more positive characteristics than Unattractive.

a Few years later – in 1979 – made, scientists from the Yale University, but an important discovery. You came up with the Theory in question, that good looks should always be an advantage in the work world. Also they made an Experiment.

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role of attractiveness when applying for Top positions: women are at a disadvantage

presented it to the trial participants with a similar resume of the candidate, which, however, very different photos attached were: In a case of an attractive Person was shown, in the other an unattractive. That was the only difference. Unlike the above-described Experiment, it was inserted in this experiment, however, a variance In one case and the application of an average-paid Job, which was on Level 8 of the 21 stages of the hierarchy of a large company. In the other case, it was a very well-paid top position in the company, which was on Level 16 of the hierarchy.

The interesting result: For male candidates of good appearance was an advantage when it came to the Top Position. 43.5 percent found that the more attractive a man is better suited for the Top Position, while the said only 13 per cent of the male applicant with the unattractive appearance. In the case of women it was Vice versa: 30.5 percent gave the unattractive woman's preference when applying for the Top Position, while only 13 percent opted for the beautiful applicant. The situation was quite different in the case of this Experiment, when it came to the application for the Durchschnittsjob ("nonmanagerial job"). Here are 47 percent of the trial participants the more beautiful woman gave the preference, compared with 16 per cent who opted for the unattraktivere woman. /iStockphoto

The masculine – the better: When it comes to leadership

The result: "These data strongly suggest that the question of whether attractiveness is a help or a hindrance for an applicant depends on the gender of the applicant and the nature of the searched location. While attractiveness was consistently as an advantage for male applicants who wanted a job as a clerk in a company, it was for female candidates only then of advantage, if it was a non-conductive body." For beautiful women, according to the scientists, that their beauty is more of a disadvantage when it comes to a Top Job.

As the reason for the deprivation, the researchers suspected that Top would associate positions with "male" characteristics – and the more feminine a woman appears, the more inappropriate appear to you for the Job. They recommended women therefore, if you are applying for a Top Job, to appear as masculine and unattractive: "This finding implies, unfortunately, that women should strive to be as unattractive and appear masculine as possible, if you want to make a career and leadership positions in companies aspire to."

scientist advises: Feminine aspects in the case of job stress

In a similar direction, the results of a German doctor direct work of Anke von Rennenkampff from the year 2005. Through four studies, they showed "that a masculine physical appearance leads to a better 'fit' and thus to a reduction of gender-stereotypical perception of leadership, while as a given, considered the fit between the men and management skills through a feminine physical appearance is reduced". For men it was when applying for leadership positions advantageously, if you looked male and a disadvantage, if you had a feminine. imago images / Westend61 scientist advises: Feminine aspects in the case of job stress.

The women, the researcher recommended that, similar to the above-cited American scientists: "Regardless of the actual gender of the Applicant, it should not be during the application process, is advantageous to emphasize feminine aspects of the external appearance." She added, however, you do not should overdo it, since too much masculinity, in turn, can lead to "women violate their gender role", which would then lead to negative consequences.

New study: Beautiful women is more likely to be distrusted

A recent study from the year 2019 by Leah D. Sheppard (Washington State University) and Stefanie K. Johnson (University of Colorado, Boulder) also came to the conclusion that beauty is rather a disadvantage for women in business. However, they saw reasons for it. They conducted six different studies that show whether it is more beautiful than unattractive female managers, if they announce either positive or negative measures. But regardless of what kind of messages were: Beautiful women have been more mistrusted than the less attractive women. The scientists called this the "femme fatal effect".

With different variations of your studies, you tried to prove that the previous attempts at explanation, according to which the reason for the discrimination of beautiful women does not lie in the stereotype that women are considered to be "suitable" for "male" prestigious positions of leadership, could not convince. By different variants of their study they tried to demonstrate, the reason for the disadvantage was in the fact that "attractive women could often call sexual jealousy to emerge, even in the context of the workplace, which then have a negative impact on their perceived honesty and trustworthiness could have". So may fear that a beautiful woman could not be based use their sexual attractiveness to gain career advantages on their performance. New study: Beautiful women is more likely to be distrusted.

envy of beautiful women inferiority compensated complex

In my book "The society and its Rich" I have developed the so-called compensation theory: people give to other people, in any field, undeniably superior to (more plus points) negative points on other fields, so that you can feel them as equivalent or even superior. So rich people are deprived of often moral values. Similarly, also in the case of very beautiful women. Anyone who has something to others, whether it is wealth, intelligence, or beauty, thus provoking envy and inferiority complex in those who are not so rich, not so smart and not so beautiful. These feelings of inferiority are compensated by the fact that one ascribes to the Person in other areas (and in particular the moral area) negative properties.

Rich or Beautiful to be said, therefore, qualities of character, such as "egoism" or they are described as "cold". Also, perhaps, an unconscious zero-sum plays, or equity, think of a role: Many people seem to believe that nature, in the sense of "had to be balancing justice" someone who gives you benefits on a territory, in other areas the disadvantages. Although there is nothing to suggest that this is not so, and there is no evidence that beautiful women are, on average, less intelligent than unattractive, but the prejudice results, ultimately, from envy.

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Date Of Update: 31 May 2020, 03:27
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