“You sound perfect for the job.” The effect of vocal versus physical attractiveness on ratings of personality and employability Document

McCarthy, Paige (2012) “You sound perfect for the job.” The effect of vocal versus physical attractiveness on ratings of personality and employability Document. Loughborough University.

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Abstract

The present study investigated the comparative influences of facial versus vocal attractiveness on initial impressions of female job applicants. To investigate which stimulus provided a stronger cue to applicants’ personality and employability ratings, 57 students rated an attractive and an unattractive applicant for these traits. Judgements were either based on images of their faces, or recordings of their voices. Thus, a 2 (interviewer gender) x 2 (stimulus) x 2 (attractiveness) x 2 (order) design was used. It was found that attractive candidates were preferred over their unattractive competitors and particular preference was given to vocal attractiveness, suggesting this to be the stronger cue to implicit personality theory. The existence of female intrasexual competition in the occupational context was also investigated, although no effect of interviewer gender on applicant success was found. The conclusions are discussed in terms of the existing biases of the employment process. Implications for particular interviewing techniques are discussed and directions for future research into this important topic are proposed.