How much can we tell about someone without having to speak at all? People naturally judge each other by how they look and what they wear. But sometimes these judgments of appearance are not what the person is truly like. "Despite the crucial role of physical appearance in forming first impressions, little research has examined the accuracy of personality impressions based on appearance alone." (Naumann, Vazire, Rentfrow, & Gosling, 2009)
We tend to judge people by the way they look. If someone is overweight we believe them to be lazy or unmotivated. If someone is well put together we think that they care a lot about their appearance and take the time to look good. One's appearance is often is a huge factor in how people perceive you, many times it is the only thing. Because there is such an onus on appearance there is a lot of pressure to keep yourself looking as good as possible. Acne creams for zits, rogan for thin or graying hair. The pressure and stresses that come with keeping a great appearance can lead to low self esteem and mental health issues.
People like to think they can determine a persons traits by simply looking them up and down or think they know all about them by knowing the title they seem to represent. For instance, jock, who ever obtains this title by playing on a sports team is looked upon like they don't have a clue in the classroom. A person's title is determined by what they do, not who they are. They may look the part but there is usually so much more to a person than just the title they carry or fit in to. We all use schemas to come to a conclusion about who a person is, whether it be on purpose or unconsciously. This blog entry will show how schema's sometimes steer us wrong.
Non verbally we can express things such as emotions and character. Often stereotypes of what people are like are expressed through what they wear. But most of the time what we wear doesnt reflect our personalities and what really are like.
The EMO stereo type:
Everyone has heard of the "emo" stereotype. People we see wearing black clothes, dark eye make up and dark hair we classify as being emo. Most people see someone dressed like this and immediately make assumptions. We think that they are emotional, sad, depressed, and angry at the world. Society has helped to make this stereotype one that everyone knows and judges. There is even songs about this stereotype....
Although society has made us believe certain things about people with this dress, it is rarely true. Everyone wearing a black shirt is not depressed, and everyone wearing dark eye make up doesn't hate the world.
I love the singer India Arie’s song “I am not my hair.” Sure, our hairstyles may say a lot about who we are, but sometimes that can be negatively interpreted. In the African American community, many women including myself have decided to “go natural.” This basically means that instead of chemically processing our hair to make it straight, we let it grow into all of its kinked-out glory.
A lot of people say that those who go natural are trying to “get back to their roots,” meaning that everything we do is based solely on the African American culture. This is not true. I honestly just want healthier hair and I feel like chemically processing it is not going to help me achieve my goal. Just because I have kinky hair does not mean I walk around shouting “power to the people!”
Feel free to check out India Arie’s song in all of its fabulous-ness:
Looking at the outside appearance can communicate many things about a person, some physical attributes can expose the truthful qualities about a person but others may contradict or be a deception of what they are really about and who they really are. A person’s physical features or style of clothing, or haircuts can lead to judgments of their sexual orientation. For instance, men who wear scarves, skinny jeans, and designer shoes may be believed to take on the sexual orientation of a homosexual or a woman with short hair or big muscles, like the photograph of Becca Watson above, may be assumed to sexually prefer women.
Just like people can guess a person’s sexual orientation by their exterior, existing schemas may suggest that people can look at someone and take a gander at the number of sexual partners they have had. This is very common for woman to mostly experience these judgments, from both opposite and same sex parties. If a woman is attractive and pretty she is probably going to be assumed to have had multiple sexual partners throughout her life and if a woman dresses in revealing clothing she will probably acquire the same kind of judgments as well; like a woman who is less attractive and more conservative may be assumed to have had no or few sexual partners. It’s funny how something so private can be assumed by a person’s appearance, but that’s how powerful looks are in today’s society and communication norms.
Appearance is critical no matter what the situation. Whenever I go out partying or clubbing I make a point to make sure I look nice and presentable, heck even desirable. No matter what the situation people try and make sure that they look presentable. Even at the gym people are stressed about their current and potential appearances. The stress and energy one can spend on appearance can lead to detrimental behavior. Sicknesses such as bulimia, anorexia, and obsessive compulsive disorder can all stem from insecurities with one’s appearance. Millions of people struggle with their physical appearance; from diseases to traumas from bullying and low self esteem issues someone’s appearance is something that can define them. The most important thing however is to make sure that it is you that defines your appearance and who you are and not let your appearance defines you.
This is a pretty funny video of the great extent people will go to make themselves fit into a more acceptable image……
“Our results underscore the important role of physical appearance in personality judgment. As we predicted, physical appearance serves as a channel through which personality is manifested and observers discover many aspects of personality.” (Naumann, Vazire, Rentfrow, & Gosling, 2009) .
According to the study referenced above, the way one looks is a reflection of their personality. So what about the people who “don’t care” how they look?
Well unless you are actually a caveman you have some sort of sense of style, whether it be a choice to wear glasses instead of contacts, a t-shirt and jeans, or even an adult sized onesie. Whatever your choice, people will judge you by it for better or for worse. With this in mind dress to impress when needed, and take a good look at yourself in the mirror before going out if you want to send the right nonverbal messages. Hopefully some of the above examples gave you an idea about what to do (or not do). Goodluck!
Works Cited
Naumann, L. P., Vazire, S., Rentfrow, P. J., & Gosling, S. D. (2009, September 17). Personality Judgments Based on Physical Appearance. Retrieved September 15, 2011, from Personality and Social Pyschology Bulletin: http://psp.sagepub.com/content/35/12/1661.short
