Date of Award

6-2009

Document Type

Union College Only

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Kenneth Debono

Language

English

Keywords

candidate, attractiveness, context, potential, social

Abstract

The current study investigated personnel selection decision making between high and low self-monitors as a function of social context (alone or with others) and the physical attractiveness of a potential candidate. Social context has considerable implications on one’s cognitions; merely being in the presence of others can cause people to rely on external cues and ignore inner dispositions. One hundred and fifty participants were asked to look over fictional resumes and decide on the worthiness of the potential candidate. The current study hypothesized that all participants would be affected by physical attractiveness of the candidate in the group condition, while relying more on the qualifications of the candidate when alone. High self-monitors were predicted to place a stronger emphasis on the attractiveness of the potential candidate regardless of the social context they were placed in, while lows were predicted to be more affected by attractiveness only in the group context. While the results did not entirely support the hypotheses, the study does suggest a connection between these three variables, and future research should be conducted to determine the exact relationship.

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