More about dishonesty

Do you judge a book by its cover?

We all know that we shouldn't make judgements on the basis of appearance but we probably do it all the same. We can all recall situations in which we decide on first meeting that we don't like someone but when we get to know them they end up as our best friend and yet still we continue to make snap judgements about people based on how they look. That's because first impressions count. Image consultants say that 55% of the way in which we are perceived comes from the way that we look.

This tendency to make decisions based upon appearance extends to our evaluations of trustworthiness. Research conducted at the University of Kent explored public impressions of trustworthiness of faces and, based upon this information, used visual imaging techniques to construct the most trustworthy face shown in image 1. This is a rounded face with a soft jawline, thin eyebrows, rounded and bright eyes, small nostrils, a large mouth with thin lips and a warm, bright complexion.

Compare this face with the image on the right that has been created of the least trustworthy face shown in image 2. Here, we see a sharper jawline, thicker eyebrows, part-closed eyes that are further apart, larger nostrils, a smaller mouth with fuller lips, stubble and a dull complexion.

The facial recognition expert who led the study, Dr Chris Solomon, says that his findings demonstrate the modern-day facial stereotyping influences our perceptions of honesty and trust.