{"id":4152,"date":"2021-09-14T06:00:42","date_gmt":"2021-09-14T00:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/?p=4152"},"modified":"2024-12-27T16:16:56","modified_gmt":"2024-12-27T10:46:56","slug":"do-not-go-by-the-looks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/2021\/09\/14\/do-not-go-by-the-looks\/","title":{"rendered":"193: Do Not Go by the Looks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whenever we meet new people, our brain automatically and immediately begins to categorize them in some way \u2013 male or female, same or different, friend or foe.<\/span><\/p>\n

We make judgements about people in the first few seconds of meeting them. We are always evaluating others just as they are evaluating us.<\/span><\/p>\n

This judgement is based on body language, clothing, posture, stance, eye contact, facial expressions, hand gestures and tone of voice.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Biases that influence our judgements are:<\/span><\/p>\n

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Facial Features Bias<\/u><\/strong>. We classify people to be trustworthy or not based on the facial features like Chin (wide or thin), eyebrows (high inner or low inner) and cheek bones (shallow or pronounced). Of course, eyebrow shapes and cheekbone prominence have no relationship to someone\u2019s character or honesty, but unconsciously we override our rational minds and make an instinctive judgment.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Attractiveness Bias<\/u><\/strong>. Unfair though it may be, and even if we proclaim otherwise, we judge people by their appearance. And we automatically assign favourable traits to good-looking people, judging them to be more likeable, competent, and honest than unattractive people.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Gender Bias<\/u><\/strong>. Same thing being said by or similar behaviour displayed by a male or a female has different impression on us.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Appropriate Behaviour Bias<\/u><\/strong>. We all have a tendency to make judgments about another person based on our ideas of appropriate behaviour. In reality, there is no universal behaviour that signals good or bad. People are individuals with their own unique set of verbal and nonverbal signals.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Bias by Stereotype.<\/u><\/strong> Our past experiences with others or how we have seen them represented (in the news, movies, etc.), lead us to stereotype people. Based on this we instantly and unconsciously assign them a category.<\/span><\/p>\n

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In-group\/Out-group Bias<\/u><\/strong>. It is far easier to trust and believe someone who comes from the same background or have similar interests. Even relatively small similarities, can create a bond. Similarities make us feel comfortable. Psychologically we classify people in terms of social groups. Any group that we feel part of is an \u201cin-group\u201d and any group that excludes us is an \u201cout-group.\u201d We think differently about members in each group and behave differently toward them.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Confirmation Bias.<\/u><\/strong> \u00a0We judge people based on the first impression. Once we’ve made these evaluations, confirmation bias comes into play. Looking for evidence that confirms our instantaneous and unconscious judgements, and discount evidence (even if true) that is contrary.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Do not fall into this trap of judging people instantaneously based on these inputs and biases. You may put your money on the wrong person. To avoid it:<\/span><\/p>\n