The Science of Interaction
Do you ever find yourself making assumptions about a person seconds after seeing them? Don’t worry, you are not alone. Although we don’t want to admit it, we judge a book by its cover.
In just 100 milliseconds, we make assumptions about attractiveness, likability, competence, trustworthiness, and aggressiveness. In only 50 milliseconds, people are able to correctly infer a man’s sexual orientation. Based on other studies, people wearing makeup appear more competent and those who wear watches appear more conscientious. Often times, people even infer strengths and weaknesses only reading a name on a resume.
So How Does This Impact Me?
Unfortunately, these assumptions can often have drastic effects in the business world—especially when it comes to getting a job. From clothes to shoes, skin color to gender, our minds make snap judgements about personality traits that could cause you to lose a job. How can you expect to have a successful job interview if the person interviewing you has already made assumptions about your strengths and weaknesses?
As a result of this, EBI has outlined 25 of these first impression biases that everyone should be aware of—from recruiters and hiring managers, to job hunters themselves. Being aware of these types of biases can help you put processes in place to eliminate them altogether.
