It’s All In The Face

From the Blog of Phyllis G. Pollack.

       We have all heard others who claim they can tell if someone is lying by “reading” that person’s face. By simply looking at her opponent’s face, the negotiator can tell if the opponent is trustworthy.
 

       Well. . . it seems that scientific research now supports this assertion. . . at least to some degree. In the March 5, 2009 edition of The Economist (in the Science and Technology section), the writer discusses research that reveals that “people’s creditworthiness. . . can be seen in their looks”  (Id. at “About Face”).  In short, appearances do count.

       Jefferson Duarte, Ph.d. of Rice University and his colleagues conducted experiments that suggested “that one of a person’s most telling moral features, his creditworthiness, can also be seen in his face.” (Id.)

       Using two internet sites, Prosper.com and Mechanical Turk, Dr. Durarte “recruited 25 Mechanical Turk workers and asked them to assess pictures of potential borrowers that had been posted on Prosper.com:”

      “In particular, they were asked to rate, on a scale of one to five, how trustworthy these people looked, and to estimate the percentage probability that each individual would repay a $100 loan. They were also asked to make several other assessments, such as the individual’s sex, race, age, attractiveness and obesity. The 25 results for each photograph were then averaged and analysed.”

      “The researchers looked at 6,821 loan applications, 733 which were successful. Their first finding was that the assessment of trustworthiness . . . did indeed correlate with [the] potential borrowers’ credit rating based on their credit history. . . .” (Id.)

       Dr. Duarte’s research also found that “shiftiness” was also revealed. That is, the 25 recruits from Mechanical Turk were pretty good at flagging as “untrustworthy” those who, in reality, were unable to obtain a loan at all or who obtained a loan but at a higher interest rate than the “trustworthy” loan applicant.

      While this research centers on credit trustworthiness, it also indicates that a person’s face reveals a lot. And indeed, I have posted other blogs (e.g., The Eyes Have It (10/14/08); Pride: Something To Think About (7/10/07)) discussing the revelation of body language and what a person’s eyes will tell you. So, I take this research as just further confirmation that one cannot simply listen to words being said but must also “read” the person’s face and body language. The latter will often contradict and belie the former. In truth, people reveal much more through non-verbal communication than through verbal communication. (Indeed, according to psychologist Albert Mehrabian, more than fifty (50%) percent of the total meaning of a spoken word comes through facial expressions and other non-verbal communication.)

       So. . . don’t be fooled or blinded by the “words”; read the whole “package” including the face.

       . . .Just something to think about.

                       

Phyllis Pollack

Phyllis Pollack with PGP Mediation uses a facilitative, interest-based approach. Her preferred mediation style is facilitative in the belief that the best and most durable resolutions are those achieved by the parties themselves. The parties generally know the business issues and priorities, personalities and obstacles to a successful resolution as… MORE >