Psychology of Women Quarterly, 20 (1996), 447-455. Printed in the United States of America.

THE EFFECTS OF HAIR COLOR

A N D COSMETIC USE ON
PERCEPTIONS OF A
FEMALES ABILITY

Diana J. Kyle
California State University, San Marcos

Heike I. M . Mahler
California State University, San Marcos and
University of California, San Diego

This experiment examined whether a female applicants hair color and

use of cosmetics might affect perceptions of her ability for a professional
position. One hundred thirty six college students reviewed the identical
professional resume of a female applicant for the position of a staff
accountant. Attached to the resume was a photograph of the stimulus
female applicant either wearing or not wearing cosmetics and depicted
with brunette, red, or blonde hair color. The results demonstrated signifi-
cant main effects of both hair color and cosmetic use. Specifically, the
applicant was rated more capable and was assigned a higher salary both
when depicted with brunette hair color and when depicted without
cosmetics. There were no interactions between hair color and cosmetic
use. The findings demonstrate that biases regarding personal appearance
may affect judgments about a female applicants ability.

Ideally, personnel actions such as hiring, setting salary, and judging the
competence of employees are based on a rational model of decision mak-
ing. Specifically, one would hope that such personnel actions would be

The authors thank Cherie OBoyle and two anonymous reviewers for their comments on an
earlier version of this manuscript. Portions of this article were presented at the annual meet-
ing of the Western Psychological Association, Kona, Hawaii, April 28-May 1, 1994.
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Heike I. M. Mahler, College of Arts and
Sciences, California State University, San Marcos, CA 92096-0001. Email: heike-mahler@
csusm.edu.

Published by Cambridge University Press 0361-6843196 $7.50 + .I0 447

448 KYLEA N D MAHLER
based on factors such as education and employment history of applicants,
letters of recommendation from individuals familiar with the applicants
ability and experience, and demonstrated competence on the job. Person-
nel actions are taken by human beings, however, and there is considerable
evidence that human decision making is often fraught with biases and
errors (Fiske & Taylor, 1991; Nisbett & ROSS,1980).
The social psychological literature is full of evidence that individuals
perceptions of others are heavily influenced by stereotypes based on char-
acteristics such as gender, race, age, social class, and physical attractive-
Ness (Miller, 1982). Many stereotypes are prompted by visual cues, and
physical appearance seems to be an especially important aspect of gender
stereotyping (Deaux & Kite, 1993). Such stereotypes can also influence
decision making, particularly when the decision involves organizing com-
plex, inconsistent, or incomplete information (Fiske & Taylor, 1991;
Nisbett & ROSS, 1980). Indeed, several studies have demonstrated that
stereotypic beliefs regarding a variety of physical-appearance-related
characteristics can affect personnel decisions, particularly when the job
applicant or employee is female (Cash, Gillen, & Burns, 1977; Dipboye,
Arvey, & Terpstra, 1977; Dipboye, Fromkin, & Wiback, 1975; Forsythe,
Drake, & Cox, 1985; Heilman & Stopeck, 1985).
The purpose of this experiment was to examine the effect of hair color
and cosmetic use on judgments about a female job applicants ability for a
professional position, Hair color and cosmetics use are two potentially
powerful physical appearance cues (Graham & Jouhar, 1983; Workman
& Johnson, 1991) that, unlike most other physical appearance cues, can
be rather easily modified. Although the role of cosmetics use and hair
color has been examined for impression formation (Cash, Dawson, Davis,
Bowen, & Galurnbeck, 1989; Graham & Jouhar, 1983; Workman & John-
son, 1991), little research has focused on the effects of these variables on
personnel decisions (but see Cox & Glick, 1986). Further, we were inter-
ested in the effects of cosmetics use and hair color when physical attrac-
tiveness is constant.
To examine the foregoing, college student participants reviewed the
professional rbum6 of a female applicant for a nongender-typed job, that
of an accountant. The rbumi! included a photograph depicting the appli-
cant with either blonde, red, or brunette hair color, and wearing either a
moderate amount of cosmetics or no cosmetics. Participants then rated the
applicants capability and assigned a beginning salary.
It was predicted that the applicant would receive the highest capability
ratings and starting salary when depicted with brunette hair, and the
lowest capability ratings and salary when depicted with blonde hair.
These predictions were based on both societal stereotypes and previous
research findings. The popular media often depicts blondes as possessing
relatively low intelligence and ability, and brunettes as relatively studious
and intelligent. Individuals with red hair are often portrayed as tempera-
Cosmetics and Perceptions of Ability 449
mental and hot-headed, and therefore may be perceived as difficult. To
the extent that these media portrayals reflect societys stereotypes, we
would expect brunettes to be viewed as more capable. Perhaps more im-
portant, several studies have demonstrated that blondes are rated as less
intelligent (Weir & Fine-Davis, 1989) than brunettes or redheads. In addi-
tion, in at least one study, blondes were rated as more feminine (Clayson
& Maughan, 1986), and femininity may be associated with negative per-
sonnel-related evaluations (Davis, 1987; Forsythe et al. , 1985).
We also predicted that when the applicant was wearing cosmetics she
would be perceived as being less capable and would be assigned a lower
starting salary than when not wearing cosmetics. This prediction was
based on the notion that cosmetic use is typically associated with higher
perceived femininity, which has been demonstrated to result in lower
evaluations for nongender-typed positions (Davis, 1987; Forsythe et al.,
1985).

METHOD

Participants

Participants were 136 college student (52 men, 83 women, 1 unreported)

volunteers. Age ranged from 16 to 65 years ( M = 24.63, SD = 9.51).
The majority were White (64.7%), 11% were Hispanic, 5.1% African
American, 6.6 % Asian, and 8.1% Other. Twenty-seven percent had
previous hiring experience. Participants were randomly assigned to the
experimental conditions.

Stimulus Materials

A 2 Y2 X 3 color photograph depicting the female job applicant in one

of the six experimental conditions was attached to a rbum6 reflecting the
standards typically required by accounting firms. To create the photos, a
40-year-old White female with blonde hair was photographed once while
not wearing cosmetics and then again after applying a moderate amount
of cosmetics (foundation, blush, eye shadow, eyeliner, mascara, lipstick).
Every attempt was made to hold lighting, distance from camera, and
facial expression constant in both photos. Two additional copies of each
photograph were then produced with only the hair color mechanically
altered to red and brunette, respectively.
In a pilot study, 105 undergraduate volunteers rated the woman in the
photographs as appearing equally friendly, attractive, stressed, healthy,
and happy (all p s > .14). She was rated as appearing significantly more
angry when wearing cosmetics than without cosmetics, t (103) = - 3.87,
450 KYLEAND MAHLER
Table 1
Means and Standard Deviations by Experimental Condition
for the Dependent Measures
Cosmetic Use

Brunette Redhead Blonde

Measure With Without With Without With Without

Capable
M 4.16 4.74 4.04 4.05 3.80 4.08
SD .38 .45 .69 .69 .76 -64
Salary (in dollars)
M 26,737 27,478 24,375 25,050 23,792 24,840
SD .73 1.20 1.64 1.91 1.38 1.86

p < .001, however. Participants correctly perceived the female to be

wearing significantly more cosmetics in the with-cosmetics versus without-
cosmetics condition, t (103) = -21.13, p c .001. Finally, hair color was
rated as equally natural appearing in all three hair color conditions, F (2,
102) = .37,p > .69.

Procedure

Participants were run in large groups of 25 to 30. Packets containing the

rt?sumC, a photograph in one of the six experimental conditions, and a
questionnaire were handed to subjects as they arrived. Participants were
told that (a) they would be reading the r6sum6 of an applicant for an
accountant position and rating that individual, and (b) their ratings
would be compared with those of individuals trained in interpersonal
perception and with actual aptitude test scores of the applicant.
Participants rated the applicants capability on a 7-point scale (1 = not
at all, 3 = moderate, 7 = very) and assigned a beginning salary between
$22,000 and $29,000. Finally, participants completed a number of demo-
graphic items. Participants were then fully debriefed.

RESULTS

Means and standard deviations for the ratings of capability and salary in
each experimental condition are presented in Table 1. Consistent with
previous work (e.g., Heilman & Stopeck, 1985), preliminary analyses in-
cluding participant gender as a factor demonstrated no effects involving
Cosmetics and Perceptions of Ability 451
this factor. Thus, all analyses reported below are collapsed across partici-
pant gender.

Capabi Iity

A 3 (hair color) x 2 (cosmetic use) analysis of variance (ANOVA) that

was performed on the ratings of capability produced a significant effect
for hair color, F (2, 126) = 8.91, p < .001, q 2 = .11. Comparisons be-
tween means using the Newman-Keuls method (Kepple, 1973) demon-
strated that the female applicant was rated significantly less capable when
depicted with blonde or red hair than when depicted with brunette hair
( p < .05). The blonde and red hair conditions did not differ reliably from
one another.
A significant effect for cosmetic use was also obtained, F (1, 126) =
8.29, p < .005, v 2 = .05. As predicted, the female applicant was rated
as significantly more capable when not wearing cosmetics than when
wearing cosmetics. The Hair Color x Cosmetics Use interaction was not
significant ( p > .16).

Beginning Salary

A 3 (hair color) x 2 (cosmetics use) ANOVA that was performed on the

measure of beginning salary revealed a significant effect for hair color,
F (2, 126) = 43.24, p < .001, q 2 = .38. Comparisons between means
again demonstrated that the female applicant was assigned a significantly
lower beginning salary when depicted with either blonde or red hair than
when depicted with brunette hair ( p < .05). The blonde and red hair
conditions did not reliably differ.
In addition, a significant effect for cosmetic use was obtained, F (1,
126) = 12.48, p < .001,q2 = .05. Again, as predicted, the female appli-
cant was assigned a significantly lower salary when wearing cosmetics
than when not wearing cosmetics. There was no interaction between hair
color and cosmetics use ( p > .89).

DISCUSSION

Our findings were quite consistent. On both indicators of perceived abil-

ity, the stimulus female applicants hair color and use of cosmetics exerted
important effects. Specifically, participants rated the female applicant as
more capable and assigned her a higher beginning salary when she was
not wearing cosmetics. Similarly, she was rated more capable and was
assigned a higher salary when depicted with brunette hair rather than
with either red or blonde hair. Contrary to our predictions, the red and
452 KYLEAND MAHLER
blonde hair-color conditions did not reliably differ from one another.
There were also no interactions between hair color and cosmetics use.
Our findings might be interpreted as contrary to those of Cox and Glick
(1986) who found no differences in evaluations of a female applicant as a
function of cosmetics use. Any one of a number of differences between our
study and that of Cox and Glick (1986) might account for the different
outcomes, however. For example, the multiple-stimulus photographs em-
ployed by Cox and Glick (1986) were of females between the ages of 22
and 30, whereas our stimulus female was 40 years old. In addition, the
stimulus females in Cox and Glicks (1986) study were made-up by profes-
sional cosmeticians. In order to increase generalizability, the stimulus fe-
male in our study applied her own cosmetics, as do most working women.
Our study design clearly does not allow a definitive explanation for why
hair color and cosmetics use may influence personnel decisions. However,
one possibility is that such visual cues may evoke stereotypes, which in
turn affect attributions about applicants traits (Fiske & Taylor, 1991).
For example, a blonde applicant may evoke the dumb blonde stereo-
type, which in turn may result in lower evaluations of ability. If this is the
case, one might expect personal appearance cues to have different effects
depending on the position (and its associated stereotypes) for which an
applicant is being considered. For example, an unmade-up brunette may
best fit the stereotype, and thereby receive the highest evaluation when the
position in question most readily evokes an image of a quiet, intelligent,
nondescript individual. In contrast, when the position is one stereotypi-
cally associated with a fiery, outgoing individual a redhead wearing cos-
metics may receive the highest evaluation. Further, personal-appearance-
cue stereotypes may be particularly likely to exert an effect when the
decision is complex or other available information is inconsistent (Fiske &
Taylor, 1991; Nisbett & Ross, 1980). For example, in the case in which
two applicants are equally qualified but have different strengths and
weaknesses, physical appearance cues may be particularly important.
These issues should be examined in future work.

Methodological Considerations

Several methodological issues warrant consideration. First, the fact that

the participants were all college students leads to concerns regarding gen-
eralizability. However, our participants were generally older (M =
24.63) and their age range (16-65) greater than one might expect on a
more traditional college campus. Further, 27 % of the participants had
previously been in the position of hiring an employee. Moreover, there is
no reason to expect that hair color and cosmetics use stereotypes held by
college students would be fundamentally different from those held by
employers.
Cosmetics and Perceptions of Ability 453
Also, in this study we did not vary the position for which the target was
applying. As discussed above, stereotypes particular to an occupation may
interact with personal cues. Thus, caution should be used in generalizing
these findings to other occupations.
In addition, it should be noted that in this study participants were
told that their responses would be compared to individuals trained in
interpersonal perception. Thus, it is possible that subjects were primarily
concerned with matching the experts and that as a result their ratings
reflect perceived social stereotypes rather than their own views.
As is true of most previous work examining the effects of physical ap-
pearance cues on personnel decisions, we did not include a no-photo con-
dition. Thus, our findings speak only to the relative effects of different
hair colors and degrees of cosmetics use. Although from a theoretical
standpoint it may be interesting to know whether having blonde or red
hair is detrimental and having brown hair is beneficial, in real life person-
nel decisions are rarely made in the absence of such physical appearance
cues.
Also, it is important to note that it simply was not possible to alter the
exact same photograph to add or remove cosmetics. The results of the pilot
study suggest that we were generally successful in our attempts to keep the
two photographs as similar as possible, however. In contrast, we were
able to use the exact same photograph for all three hair-color conditions.
Further, pilot work demonstrated no perceived differences across hair-
color conditions on a number of dimensions. Thus, we are quite confident
that the results obtained on the hair-color factor were a result of biases
associated with different hair colors. On the whole, we believe that our
methodology allows us some confidence in ruling out a number of con-
founds and artifacts.

Conclusions

A substantial literature exists indicating that personal appearance cues can

influence personnel decisions, particularly when such cues affect perceived
attractiveness (Cash et al., 1977; Dipboye et al., 1977; Heilman & Sto-
peck, 1985). This study extends previous work by demonstrating that per-
sonnel decisions can also be affected by two easily modifiable appearance
cues that have received little previous attention: hair color and cosmetics
use. Further, this study demonstrates that these variables can affect per-
sonnel decisions even when perceived attractiveness does not vary. That
physical appearance cues affect personnel decisions at all is clearly con-
trary to a rational model of decision making, and it places individuals
with certain characteristics at an unfair disadvantage. Further, if future
research demonstrates that biases regarding hair color and cosmetics use
can lead decision makers to ignore or give less weight to more reliable
454 KYLEAND MAHLER
indicators of performance, it may lead to less than optimal decisions. In
addition, research has demonstrated that once an individual has been
categorized, subsequent judgments about that individual may be based on
that initial categorization rather than on an unbiased review of available
information (Lingle & Ostrom, 1979). This suggests that initial biased
judgments of individuals based on interpersonal cues may be self-
perpetuating and may lead to future biased evaluations and decisions re-
garding the same individual. Thus, regardless of their actual performance,
blondes and/or red heads may have a difficult time overcoming any initial
skepticism about their capabilities.

First draft received: April 18, 1995

Final draft accepted: January 22,1996

NOTE

1. In another study we found that 76% of college students indicated that they identified the
occupation of accountant with both genders (Kyle & Mahler, 1995).

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