Humans are afraid of being shallow. In the absence of war, moral superiority takes center stage. Humans are supposed be intelligent, and compassionate, able to see past the superficial and evaluate others by the contents of their character. Anything less than that would make us no better than a child or an animal.
So when it comes to looks, most people would say that looks do not matter in life. It is the morally superior answer that is only befitting of a mature adult. But is that the real answer?
Obviously from the title, I do not believe so. Humans as much as we don't want to admit it, are animals, just smarter ones. We have the same biological impulses to survive, eat , sleep, and reproduce. And like animals, we also very visual creatures. We make judgements on people based on their appearance. When we see a person with unkempt hair, tattoos, bad teeth, acne, a ripped t-shirt with stains on it, we draw negative impression of that person even before that person opens his or her mouth. We might believe that this person is a drug addict, a criminal, or just basically a creep. The ramifications are enormous.
This isn't just a theory. It's just real life. See the excerpt and link to a study below where individuals were asked to infer the lives of people in photographs.
http://faculty.uncfsu.edu/tvancantfort/Syllabi/Gresearch/Readings/17Dion.pdf
"The results suggest that a physical attractiveness stereotype exists and that its content is perfectly compatible with the "What is beautiful is good" thesis. Not only are physically attractive persons assumed to possess more socially desirable personalities than those of lesser attractiveness, but it is presumed that their lives will be happier and more successful. "
Or this study that shows discrimination in facially flawed individuals in interviews.
" Results revealed that the participants with facially stigmatized applicants attended more to the cheek (i.e., where the stigma was placed), which led participants to recall fewer interview facts, which in turn led to lower applicant ratings. In addition, the participants with the stigmatized (vs. nonstigmatized) applicant depleted more regulatory resources. In Study 2, 38 managers conducted face-to-face interviews with either a facially stigmatized or nonstigmatized applicant, and then rated the applicant. Results revealed that managers who interviewed a facially stigmatized applicant (vs. a nonstigmatized applicant) rated the applicant lower, recalled less information about the interview, and depleted more self-regulatory resources."
Discrimination based on looks are subtle and many times we do not even know it. And it extends far beyond our dating prospects. It can extend to our intelligence and our social skills as well.
We call this the halo effect. When it comes to physical attractiveness, because that person is hot, we make several assumptions about that person. We may also assume that the person is intelligent, healthy, rich, socially adept, and athletic. Sometimes, this positive reinforcement can turn these assumptions into self fulfilling prophecies.
Now think about the opposite effect. If you not that attractive, people will make negative judgements about you. They will assume that you are not very smart, are not socially adept i.e. they will make you uncomfortable and not laugh at your jokes, not healthy etc. This negative reinforcement can turn such assumptions into self fulfilling prophecies as well.
Sometimes this can work in reverse. Some people are intimidated by beautiful people. Take for example a beautiful woman in a high position. Some people will assume that she slept her way to the position and she didn't earn with her hard work. Or even an attractive man might be seen as domineering and thus he might be kicked out of some circles due to fear.
We live in superficial world and it sucks.
This post isn't to make you insecure about your looks, I just wanted to point the realities of the world. Me personally have noticed shifts in other people's behavior, good and bad, when I began to exercise and wear better clothes (I just felt like it).
Still, most of use including myself will never reach the level of a supermodel. And that's okay. Because even though looks matter, you do not have to make it the only thing that matters. Do not put yourself in a position where people can make snap judgements about you. Avoid fast paced environments where your looks will work against you. Try expressing yourself in places such as a classroom or a plane where things slow down and you can actually build something worthwhile.
I'll write more about this later but that all I have for now.
Thanks for reading!