The influence of gender-stereotyped perfumes on leadership attribution

Investigating the Crossmodal Influence of Odour on the Visual Perception of Facial Attractiveness and Age

We report two experiments designed to investigate whether the presentation of a range of pleasant fragrances, containing both floral and fruity notes, would modulate people’s judgements of the facial attractiveness (Experiment 1) and age (Experiment 2) of a selection of typical female faces varying in age in the range 20–69 years. In Experiment 1, male participants rated the female faces as less attractive when presented with an unpleasant fragrance compared to clean air. The rated attractiveness of the female faces was lower when the participants rated the unpleasant odour as having a lower attractiveness and pleasantness, and a higher intensity. In Experiment 2, both male and female participants rated the age of female faces while presented with one of four pleasant fragrances or clean air as a control. Only the female participants demonstrated a crossmodal effect, with the pleasant fragrances inducing an older rating for female faces in the 40–49-years-old age range, whereas a younger rating was documented for female faces in the 60–69-years-old age range. Taken together, these results are consistent with the view that while the valence of fragrance (pleasant versus unpleasant) exerts a robust crossmodal influence over judgements of facial attractiveness, the effects of pleasant fragrance on judgements of a person’s age appear to be less reliable. One possible explanation for the differing effect of scent in the two cases relates to the fact that attractiveness judgements are more subjective, hedonic, and/or intuitive than age ratings which are more objective, cognitive-mediated, and/or analytic in nature.

Scent of a Woman-Or Man: Odors Influence Person Knowledge

First impressions of social traits are regularly, rapidly, and readily determined from limited information about another individual. Relatively little is known about the way that olfactory information, particularly from scents that are not body odors, alters a first impression. Can the attributes of an odorant be conferred onto a person associated with that scent? To explore this, 101 participants were asked to form an impression of a hypothetical person based on the following stimuli: A gender-neutral silhouette, a list of six personal characteristics, and one of five odorants. Participants then rated the likelihood that the hypothetical person possessed each of 51 personality traits that were determined a priori as falling into six attribute categories. Participants also directly rated all odorants for the six categories and intensity. A T-test showed that ratings of the hypothetical person were less disparate from the odor that was presented during impression formation than from other odors. ANOVA revealed that the effects were heterogeneous, with odorants varying in their effectiveness in associating the hypothetical person with categories. The present data suggest that a hypothetical person can be imbued with the specific attributes of an odor and that some odors are better at contributing to impressions than others.

The scent of attraction and the smell of success: crossmodal influences on person perception

In recent decades, there has been an explosion of research into the crossmodal influence of olfactory cues on multisensory person perception. Numerous peer-reviewed studies have documented that a variety of olfactory stimuli, from ambient malodours through to fine fragrances, and even a range of chemosensory body odours can influence everything from a perceiver's judgments of another person's attractiveness, age, affect, health/disease status, and even elements of their personality. The crossmodal and multisensory contributions to such effects are reviewed and the limitations/peculiarities of the research that have been published to date are highlighted. At the same time, however, it is important to note that the presence of scent (and/or the absence of malodour) can also influence people's (i.e., a perceiver's) self-confidence which may, in turn, affect how attractive they appear to others. Several potential cognitive mechanisms have been put forward to try and explain such crossmodal/multisensory influences, and some of the neural substrates underpinning these effects have now been characterized. At the end of this narrative review, a number of the potential (and actual) applications for, and implications of, such crossmodal/multisensory phenomena involving olfaction are outlined briefly.

Oral hygiene effects verbal and nonverbal displays of confidence

Although oral hygiene is known to impact self-confidence and self-esteem, little is known about how it influences our interpersonal behavior. Using a wearable, multi-sensor device, we examined differences in consumers' individual and interpersonal confidence after they had or had not brushed their teeth. Students (N = 140) completed nine one-to-one, 3-minute "speed dating" interactions while wearing a device that records verbal, nonverbal, and mimicry behavior. Half of the participants brushed their teeth using Close-Up toothpaste (Unilever) prior to the interactions, whilst the other half abstained from brushing that morning. Compared to those who had not brushed their teeth, participants who had brushed were more verbally confident (i.e., spoke louder, over-talked more), showed less nonverbal nervousness (i.e., fidgeted less), and were more often perceived as being "someone similar to me." These effects were moderated by attractiveness but not by self-esteem or self-monitoring.

Interdisciplinary challenges for elucidating human olfactory attractiveness

Many species use chemicals to communicate. In humans, there is increasing evidence that chemicals conveyed by the body are extremely important in interpersonal relationships. However, many aspects of chemical communication remain to be explored to fully understand this function in humans. The aim of this article is to identify relevant challenges in this field, with a focus on human attractiveness in the context of reproduction, and to put forward roadmaps for future studies that will hopefully extend to a wider range of social interactions. The first challenge consists in not being limited to body (mal)odours from the axilla. Preliminary data on how the odour of the face and head is perceived are presented. Second, there is a crucial need to increase our knowledge of the chemical bases of human chemical communication. Third, cross-cultural approaches must not be overlooked, because they have a major input in understanding the universal and culture-specific aspects of chemical communication. Fourth, the influence of specific cultural practices such as contraceptive and fragrance use is likely to be prominent and, therefore, needs to be well described. The fifth and last challenge for research projects in this field is the integration of different disciplines such as behavioural sciences, social sciences, neurosciences and microbiology. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Olfactory communication in humans'.

Effect of Biological Relatedness on Perfume Selection for Others: Preliminary Evidence

People tend to choose perfumes to complement their body odour. As kin share some body odour qualities, their ability to select complementary perfumes for relatives might be higher compared with selection for nonrelatives. We tested this in two studies, comparing selection of a perfume for a target man by himself and by either a familiar but unrelated individual (girlfriend; Study 1) or a relative (sister; Study 2). Target men applied the two perfumes (own or other's choice) to their axillae and then wore cotton pads for 12 hr. Collected perfume-body odour blends and perfumes alone were assessed by rater panels. In Study 1, the blends were rated as nominally more pleasant when body odours were mixed with the perfumes selected by girlfriends compared with those selected by target men themselves. In Study 2, body odours mixed with perfumes selected by sisters were rated significantly more attractive than those mixed with perfumes selected by target men. No significant differences were found for attractiveness and pleasantness ratings when perfumes were rated alone, suggesting that it was the resulting blends that were uniquely different. Our results indicate that sisters might be particularly tuned to select suitable perfumes for their siblings.

Nonverbal Elements of Leadership Behaviour

In this theoretical paper, we investigate the importance of nonverbal behaviour in the context of leadership. Research on the decoding of social interactions has shown that the quality or type of relationship as well as relationally relevant emotional states are transmitted nonverbally. With this in mind, we review the existing literature on nonverbal leadership behaviour, such as research on Pygmalion leadership or political leadership. The nonverbal behaviours examined in these research areas show remarkable consistency and we therefore conclude that it is possible to deduce about effective nonverbal leadership behaviours. Still, many points remain open for further research and discussion. For example, no information is available concerning nonverbal behaviour in negative feedback processes. We conclude by outlining fruitful research directions in the area of nonverbal behaviour in leadership.

Meta-Cognition about Biological Sex and Gender-Stereotypic Physical Appearance: Consequences for the Assessment of Leadership Competence

Previous findings are inconsistent with regard to whether men are judged as being more or less competent leaders than women. However, masculine-relative to feminine-looking persons seem to be judged consistently as more competent leaders. Can this different impact of biological sex and physical appearance be due to the disparate availability of meta-cognitive knowledge about both sources? The results of Study 1 indicated that individuals possess meta-cognitive knowledge about a possible biasing influence of persons’ biological sex, but not for their physical appearance. In Study 2, participants judged the leadership competence of a male versus female stimulus person with either masculine or feminine physical appearance. In addition, the available cognitive capacity was manipulated. When high capacity was available, participants corrected for the influence of stimulus persons’ sex, but they fell prey to this influence under cognitive load. However, the effect of physical appearance was not moderated by cognitive capacity.

Body Odor Based Personality Judgments: The Effect of Fragranced Cosmetics

People can accurately assess various personality traits of others based on body odor (BO) alone. Previous studies have shown that correlations between odor ratings and self-assessed personality dimensions are evident for assessments of neuroticism and dominance. Here, we tested differences between assessments based on natural body odor alone, without the use of cosmetics and assessments based on the body odor of people who were allowed to use cosmetics following their daily routine. Sixty-seven observers assessed samples of odors from 113 odor donors (each odor donor provided two samples - one with and one without cosmetic use); the donors provided their personality ratings, and the raters judged personality characteristics of the donors based on the provided odor samples. Correlations between observers' ratings and self-rated neuroticism were stronger when raters assessed body odor in the natural body odor condition (natural BO condition; r s = 0.20) than in the cosmetics use condition (BO+cosmetics condition; r s = 0.15). Ratings of dominance significantly predicted self-assessed dominance in both conditions (r s = 0.34 for natural BO and r s = 0.21 for BO+cosmetics), whereas ratings of extraversion did not predict self-assessed extraversion in either condition. In addition, ratings of body odor attractiveness and pleasantness were significantly lower in natural BO condition than in BO+cosmetics condition, although the intensity of donors' body odors was similar under both conditions. Our findings suggest that although olfaction seems to contribute to accurate first impression judgments of certain personality traits, cosmetic use can affect assessments of others based on body odor.

Ironic Effects of Sexual Minority Group Membership: Are Lesbians Less Susceptible to Invoking Negative Female Stereotypes than Heterosexual Women?

The traditional stereotype of the typical woman has been described as "nice, but incompetent." However, such general gender stereotypes are applied to individual targets only under certain conditions: They are used to "fill in the blanks" (Heilman, 2012) if little personal information is provided about a target. "Typical lesbians" are regarded to have more typically masculine (agentic) characteristics such as task competence than the typical woman does. We thus hypothesized that if a woman displays behavior coinciding with the stereotype of the typical woman, it is more readily interpreted as stereotypically female if performed by a heterosexual woman than by a lesbian. Participants (N = 296) read a hypothetical job interview in which we manipulated the target's sexual orientation (between subjects). Findings demonstrated that a lesbian was judged as more competent than a heterosexual woman in the presence of behavior that may be interpreted as gender-stereotypical (Experiments 1 and 2). This difference in competence judgments was not found in the absence of gender-stereotypical behavior (Experiment 1). Judging the heterosexual woman as low in masculinity was related to a judgment of lower competence (Experiment 2). Our findings demonstrate that there are conditions under which lesbians, a group often stereotyped negatively, are less susceptible to invoking negative female stereotypes than heterosexual women are.

A qualitative study of faculty members' views of women chairs

BACKGROUND

Concurrent with the evolving role of the department chair in academic medicine is the entry of women physicians into chair positions. Because implicit biases that stereotypically masculine behaviors are required for effective leadership remain strong, examining faculty members' perceptions of their chair's leadership in medical school departments with women chairs can provide insight into the views of women leaders in academic medicine and the complex ways in which gender may impact these chairs' leadership style and actions.

METHODS

We conducted semistructured interviews with 13 male and 15 female faculty members representing all faculty tracks in three clinical departments chaired by women. Inductive, qualitative analysis of the subsequent text allowed themes to emerge across interviews.

RESULTS

Four themes emerged regarding departmental leadership. One dealt with the leadership of the previous chair. The other three described the current chair's characteristics (tough, direct, and transparent), her use of communal actions to help support and mentor her faculty, and her ability to build power through consensus. Because all three chairs were early in their tenure, a wait and see attitude was frequently expressed. Faculty generally viewed having a woman chair as an indication of positive change, with potential individual and institutional advantages.

CONCLUSIONS

This exploratory study suggests that the culture of academic medicine has moved beyond questioning women physicians' competence to lead once they are in top organizational leadership positions. The findings are also consonant with experimental research indicating that women leaders are most successful when they pair stereotypic male (agentic) behaviors with stereotypic female (communal) behaviors. All three chairs exhibited features of a transformational leadership style and characteristics deemed essential for effective leadership in academic medicine.

The becoming of business bodies: Gender, appearance, and leadership development

The article uses media images of businesswomen to explore how Master of Business Administration students position themselves in relation to the businesswomen. Following feminist media studies, the article argues that subjects are “becoming” through media images. In order to explore subject formation processes through images, a business school setting, as a place that develops future leaders and that is dominated by men and masculinity, was chosen. The analysis of the interviews indicates that Master of Business Administration students position themselves in relation to the images of businesswomen by commenting on the appropriateness of dress based on the industry and by discussing that being sexually attractive is deemed unprofessional for women. While the subject positions that the Master of Business Administration students occupied were rather normative in nature, the article argues that images can be used as a helpful tool to allow reflection on normativity in relation to gender in leadership development. It is thereby possible to think about a displacement of norms by facilitating the use of alternative subject positions.

Research leadership and investigators: gender distribution in the federal government

BACKGROUND

The National Academies reported in Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fulfilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering (2006) that "women are very likely to face discrimination." In academic medicine, gender distribution is becoming more balanced. In the federal government, women also have made progress, doubling their representation in professional positions to 44%. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has a research program and a mission to train health care professionals; however, its gender distribution has not been described.

METHODS

We conducted a descriptive study using public data for positions in the VA, National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). We followed with a case-control analysis of predictors of receipt of grant funding in the VA. Participants were 224 leadership positions and 132 principal investigators.

RESULTS

Women comprised 33% (AHRQ), 27% (NIH), and 0% (VA) of the top research leadership. Across all VA research levels, women comprised 45% to 0%, depending on the service. In the case-control analysis of principal investigators, men had greater odds (odds ratio 8.0) of a Cooperative Studies Program (CSP) trial award. History of first, last, or any authorship on a clinical trial publication in the 10 years before the index trial was only weakly associated with award of a CSP trial. The gender imbalance was not explained by publication history.

CONCLUSIONS

Marked gender disparities were seen in the VA, except in Health Services Research. Organizations must investigate their practices to reveal disparities, investigate underlying factors, and intervene as needed.

Evolution, appearance, and occupational success

Visual characteristics, including facial appearance, are thought to play an important role in a variety of judgments and decisions that have real occupational outcomes in many settings. Indeed, there is growing evidence suggesting that appearance influences hiring decisions and even election results. For example, attractive individuals are more likely to be hired, taller men earn more, and the facial appearance of candidates has been linked to real election outcomes. In this article, we review evidence linking physical appearance to occupational success and evaluate the hypothesis that appearance based biases are consistent with predictions based on evolutionary theories of coalition formation and leadership choice. We discuss why appearance based effects are so pervasive, addressing ideas about a "kernel of truth" in attributions and about coalitional psychology. We additionally highlight that appearance may be differently related to success at work according to the types of job or task involved. For example, leaders may be chosen because the characteristics they possess are seen as best suited to lead in particular situations. During a time of war, a dominant-appearing leader may inspire confidence and intimidate enemies while during peace-time, when negotiation and diplomacy are needed, interpersonal skills may outweigh the value of a dominant leader. In line with these ideas, masculine-faced leaders are favored in war-time scenarios while feminine-faced leaders are favored in peace-time scenarios. We suggest that such environment or task specific competencies may be prevalent during selection processes, whereby individuals whose appearance best matches perceived task competences are most likely selected, and propose the general term "task-congruent selection" to describe these effects. Overall, our review highlights how potentially adaptive biases could influence choices in the work place. With respect to certain biases, understanding their origin and current prevalence is important in order to potentially reduce discrimination in the work place.

Interventions that affect gender bias in hiring: a systematic review

PURPOSE

To systematically review experimental evidence for interventions mitigating gender bias in employment. Unconscious endorsement of gender stereotypes can undermine academic medicine's commitment to gender equity.

METHOD

The authors performed electronic and hand searches for randomized controlled studies since 1973 of interventions that affect gender differences in evaluation of job applicants. Twenty-seven studies met all inclusion criteria. Interventions fell into three categories: application information, applicant features, and rating conditions.

RESULTS

The studies identified gender bias as the difference in ratings or perceptions of men and women with identical qualifications. Studies reaffirmed negative bias against women being evaluated for positions traditionally or predominantly held by men (male sex-typed jobs). The assessments of male and female raters rarely differed. Interventions that provided raters with clear evidence of job-relevant competencies were effective. However, clearly competent women were rated lower than equivalent men for male sex-typed jobs unless evidence of communal qualities was also provided. A commitment to the value of credentials before review of applicants and women's presence at above 25% of the applicant pool eliminated bias against women. Two studies found unconscious resistance to "antibias" training, which could be overcome with distraction or an intervening task. Explicit employment equity policies and an attractive appearance benefited men more than women, whereas repeated employment gaps were more detrimental to men. Masculine-scented perfume favored the hiring of both sexes. Negative bias occurred against women who expressed anger or who were perceived as self-promoting.

CONCLUSIONS

High-level evidence exists for strategies to mitigate gender bias in hiring.

Viewpoint: A challenge to academic health centers and the National Institutes of Health to prevent unintended gender bias in the selection of clinical and translational science award leaders

In controlled studies, both men and women preferentially select men over women for leadership positions, even when credentials are identical and despite field studies demonstrating women's equivalent or slightly better leadership effectiveness. The assumption that men will make better leaders than women is attributed to the pervasive existence of unconscious stereotypes that characterize both men and leaders as agentic or action oriented and women as dependent. The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Roadmap is a novel, prestigious award that will place considerable power in the hands of one principal investigator-conditions that predict activation of bias in favor of selecting male leaders. The authors review research supporting this assertion. To mitigate the impact of this bias and broaden the pool of potential leaders for this transformative initiative, the authors offer the following suggestions. To academic health centers they suggest (1) internal search committees comprised of at least 35% women that establish a priori the desired qualities for the CTSA leader and broadly solicit applicants, (2) explicit specification of the full range of desirable skills of a CTSA leader, and (3) systematic efforts to increase awareness of the negative impact of unconscious gender bias on women's advancement. To the NIH they suggest (1) the new multiple principal investigator rule for the CTSA program, (2) a statement in the request for applications (RFA) encouraging diversity among principal investigators, (3) repetition in the RFA of the public NIH statement of the importance of work life balance for young investigators, and (4) constitution of study sections with at least 35% women.

Masculine = Competent? Physical Appearance and Sex as Sources of Gender-Stereotypic Attributions

In two experiments, the influence of physical appearance and sex on the attribution of leadership competence was analyzed. Participants (male/female) reacted to stimulus persons from one of four groups varying in terms of sex (male/female) and physical appearance (feminine/masculine). The stimulus persons were introduced via photographs. Dependent measures referred to the attribution of leadership characteristics and were measured either directly via ratings or indirectly via a recognition test. In both experiments, participants attributed higher degrees of leadership competence to persons with typically masculine appearance than to persons with typically feminine appearance, regardless of the person’s sex. Only in the experiment with indirect measurement were male persons attributed a higher degree of leadership competence than female persons.