I found this article by the New York Times explaining that studies have found that those who wear makeup in the workplace were perceived as more trustworthy and intelligent than their non-makeup wearing counterparts. At first, I thought that this was a shallow assumption, and I still fully believe that employees should be judged on the quality of their work and not their lipstick shade, but this quote by Daniel Hamermesh, an econ professor at the University of Texas made a lot of sense to me:
“we conflate looks and a willingness to take care of yourself with a willingness to take care of people.”
I feel like this goes along with why we dress professionally. We want to express our position in an organization by the way we dress, and makeup can be a part of that. If we dress and look like a professional, then people will see us as that. However, I do think makeup is a personal preference. I feel more confident and put together while wearing it, especially when I work. Whether you want to go bare-faced without a drop of makeup or a smoky eye, your advancement in the workplace should be based upon your skills.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/13/fashion/makeup-makes-women-appear-more-competent-study.html
Wow this is super interesting. I never even thought of how makeup can affect how colleagues perceive you in the workplace. I agree with you, that your advancement should be based on your skills but I guess looking professional and wearing some makeup can help you as well! I think it helps you "look the part," and then you back it up with your good work skills.
ReplyDeleteThere's a solid literature about how looks lead to advantages or disadvantages in the workplace. Oddly, good looks tend to help men, but can go either way for women.
ReplyDeleteI find this article to be super interesting. I have wondered about make up in the workplace before, like when I have gone to interviews I have wondered how much I should wear or not wear in order to look as professional as possible. It makes sense to me that wearing make up may show that you are "put together", but also I think wearing too much make up has the potential to look unprofessional as well.
ReplyDeleteHey Regan,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this article. It made me feel so disappointed as a woman to learn that beauty/makeup still influences job success. I agree with all of the points you made except that I don't know if I necessarily agree with conflating wearing make up to appearing professional (though I know that this happens). Women are held to such unreasonable standards: too little makeup and you don't care, too much makeup and you care too much. No one wins. I don't have much trouble deciding how much makeup to wear to work based on my personal style, but I understand how it can be very challenging for people who enjoy wearing a full face to strike the right balance here. I am deeply saddened that women are judged based on such a superficial thing. I understand toning down certain makeup looks for the workplace (non-traditional shades of lipstick, super smoky eye, etc) but makeup within the normal daytime range should not be an issue. Personally, I think that we need to start the conversation about these gender-based prejudices so that we can change them. I support makeup as well as no makeup in the workplace. It is really up to the person who wears it. By the way I love the color palette of the photo you posted! All of the products would look so nice together. I've always wanted to get that Nars blush because the shade is supposed to be universally flattering. Have you tried it out? :)