Are Beautiful People Treated Better?

I just read this really interesting article about 'do looks really matter' They conducted a series of experiments and found really amazing results. They had hidden cameras follow 10 women. Half of them were what would be classed as beautiful ie young, perfect figure, fab hair, clothes etc an the other half were dressed down, no make up, some overweight etc. The results were amazing...the 'beautiful' women had doors opened for them, people let them skip queues, they were helped when they dropped things etc They had to stand with a map looking lost and see how long it took for people to help...the beautiful people were helped much quicker and strangers placed more trust in them and were willing to give them more information and 3 of the beautiful people were escorted to their destination while no one offered to do this for the others. The study found it wasnt all about sexual attraction as alot of women stopped to help the beautiful women too. The study stated "....people go out of their way to help attractive people of the same and opposite sex because they want to be liked and accepted by these good looking people." And this special treatment starts very early on. “For example, in a nursery, before newborn babies are released from a hospital, those babies who are higher in physical attractiveness, at this level defined as more cute , are touched more, held more and spoken to more,” says Dr. Patzer, who notes the trend continues in school. “You see that those teachers when they interact with children of higher physical attractiveness, they ask more questions, they prompt them for more answers. We expect those children to do better and consequently they fulfill our expectations and they actually do do better.” And says Dr. Patzer, we are just hard wired to respond more favorably to attractive people. EVen studies with babies show they will look more intently and longer at prettier faces" Im just interested to hear what people think..is life easier for beautiful people?

Yes I think life is easier when you're good-looking BUT looks don't last. Beauty is not earned, it's something you're born with. So it can be hard for someone who has relied heavily on their looks for self-esteem when those looks start to fade.

Gosh that's very interesting. Before I got to the bit about the babies I was going to suggest that maybe it's got something to do with self confidence - you know, if you look good, you feel good, you might be more inclined to make eye-contact and smile, which in turn makes people react more positively to you? As opposed to a day when you're feeling ugly and have the head down. But then the thing about the babies got me thinking about evolution - the things we are hardwired to find attractive are things that are genetically "good", like a symmetrical face etc etc - and maybe if our monkey-brain is telling us this person is attractive, therefore they have good genes, therefore the species needs them, therefore I need to help / protect / make babies with them???? Where did you find that article? I'd be interested in reading it!

[quote="BouncyL":56h0zntl]If someone's life is open to mis treatment or abuse it doesn't make a damn bit of difference what they look like. That's my belief. I've often come across stunning looking people and their personal history would have you speechless. Maybe people will hold dorrs open or help better looking people with directions quicker but when you really look at their lives and how they're treated in personal or intimate relationships looks has nothing to do with it.[/quote:56h0zntl] I think this is a very apt observation... as said I'm sure it helps with the superficial element but I'd say that's about all

We are here debating it at work and people have all kinds of opinions on it. One of my colleagues said a girl she worked with as a waitress was stunning and got so much more in tips than anyone else. She wasnt overtly using her looks but people were more generous to her. I am thinking back to when I was in school. The girls who were attractive were definately more popular and as a result probably have better self confidence through life. Other people are saying that beauty can be a hindrance in may ways too..some very good looking people arent taken seriously in certain professional careers. Also, especially women can be so jealous of 'beautiful people' and spread rumours, be vengeful etc Cabbage i logged out of my hotmail account and was on the MSN home page and it always has links to news, articles etc...its not there now. I'll google it and try find the article for you x Bouncy i agree, some people will be victims of abuse, violence, cruelty regardless of how they look. There are clearly an abundance of exapmles to prove this too but in general I do think society in general is programmed to admire 'beautiful people' I also think beauty is very superficial. Who is to say what 'beautiful' is? It is a can of worms really. Just thought it was an interesting concept that the 'beautiful' people in the article were treated better.

[quote="madly_in_love":3o9c9vye]Cabbage i logged out of my hotmail account and was on the MSN home page and it always has links to news, articles etc...its not there now. I'll google it and try find the article for you x [/quote:3o9c9vye] Ah you're very good, don't go to any trouble

I do remember reading that election candidates got more votes if they had a full head of hair and a good-looking face on posters! Obviously issues like abuse run deeper but in general, I would agree that attractive people are better received in day-to-day life.

[quote="*Gonzo*":2oy3munq]I do remember reading that election candidates got more votes if they had a full head of hair and a good-looking face on posters! Obviously issues like abuse run deeper but in general, I would agree that attractive people are better received in day-to-day life.[/quote:2oy3munq] Oh I didn't mean just abuse... yes I think looks might effect your day-to-day life but I know some drop dead gorgeous girls that are unhappy with there lives, have been treated badly by men, haven't achieved what they wanted career wise... While I think looks will always play a part in your life whether good or bad, I think personality is a much bigger factor

[quote="*Gonzo*":11w62clu]I do remember reading that election candidates got more votes if they had a full head of hair and a good-looking face on posters![/quote:11w62clu] Oh and I have TOTALLY done this...

[quote="*jamjar*":df2wknkt][quote="*Gonzo*":df2wknkt]I do remember reading that election candidates got more votes if they had a full head of hair and a good-looking face on posters! Obviously issues like abuse run deeper but in general, I would agree that attractive people are better received in day-to-day life.[/quote:df2wknkt] Oh I didn't mean just abuse... yes I think looks might effect your day-to-day life but I know some drop dead gorgeous girls that are unhappy with there lives, have been treated badly by men, haven't achieved what they wanted career wise... While I think looks will always play a part in your life whether good or bad, I think personality is a much bigger factor[/quote:df2wknkt] Oh yes, personality is very important! I mean basic day-to-day relations with people who don't know you, being served in a shop, going for a job interview, asking a stranger for a favour - I think people respond better to attractive people with a smile.