Abstract
This paper examines the evolutionary roots of research findings that demonstrate that rapid judgments of political candidates’ faces predict electoral success. Also discussed are the implications of these findings for the election and selection of leaders. We argue that rapid judgments of facial competence are a result of immediate, automatic assessment of the strength of a target, reflected in facial cues of dominance/threat; and assessment of facial cues of trust/approachability. As a result, research participants and uninvolved voters select the same candidates—those that appear relatively strong and trustworthy at a glance. The votes of highly involved voters are not influenced by such facial qualities.
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Riggio, H.R., Riggio, R.E. Appearance-Based Trait Inferences and Voting: Evolutionary Roots and Implications for Leadership. J Nonverbal Behav 34, 119–125 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10919-009-0083-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10919-009-0083-0