Halo effect
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The halo effect refers to a cognitive bias whereby the perception of a particular trait is influenced by the perception of the former traits in a sequence of interpretations.
Edward L. Thorndike was the first to support the halo effect with empirical research. In a psychology study published in 1920, Thorndike asked commanding officers to rate their soldiers; Thorndike found high cross-correlation between all positive and all negative traits. People seem not to think of other individuals in mixed terms; instead we seem to see each person as roughly good or roughly bad across all categories of measurement.
A study by Solomon Asch suggests that attractiveness is a central trait, so we presume all the other traits of an attractive person are just as attractive and sought after.
The halo effect is involved in Harold Kelley's implicit personality theory, where the first traits we recognize in other people influence our interpretation and perception of later ones because of our expectations. Attractive people are often judged as having a more desirable personality and more skills than someone of average appearance. Thus, we see that celebrities are used to endorse products that they have no actual expertise in evaluating, and with which they may not even have any prior affiliation.
The term is commonly used in human resources recruitment. It refers to the risk of an interviewer noticing a positive trait in an interviewee and as a result, paying less attention to their negative traits (or vice versa).
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[edit] Reverse Halo Effect
A corollary to the halo effect is the reverse halo effect where individuals, brands or other things are judged to have a single undesirable trait are subsequently judged to have many poor traits, allowing a single weak point or negative trait to influence others' perception of the person, brand or other thing in general.[1][2] This is also called the "devil effect."[3]
[edit] As a super model
In brand marketing, a halo effect is one where the perceived positive features of a particular item extend to a broader brand. It has been used to describe how the iPod has had positive effects on perceptions of Apple's other products.[4] The term is also widely used in the automotive industry, where a manufacturer may produce an exceptional halo vehicle in order to promote sales of an entire marque. Modern cars often described as halo vehicles include the Dodge Viper, Ford GT, and Acura NSX.
[edit] Unconscious Judgements
In the 1970s, well-known social psychologist Richard Nisbett demonstrated that even if we were told that our judgements have been affected by the halo effect, we may still have no clue when the halo effect influences us.[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Weisman, Jonathan (August 9, 2005). "Snow Concedes Economic Surge Is Not Benefiting People Equally". washingtonpost.com. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/08/AR2005080801445_pf.html. Retrieved on 2008-05-12.
- ^ Deutsch, Claudia H. (August 16, 2006). "With Its Stock Still Lackluster, G.E. Confronts the Curse of the Conglomerate". nytimes.com. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/16/business/16place.html?n=Top%2FReference%2FTimes%20Topics%2FSubjects%2FC%2FCorporations. Retrieved on 2008-05-12.
- ^ Hatcher, Cathrine (January 14, 2008). "Polishing Your Halo". cbs11tv.com. http://cbs11tv.com/watercooler/Polishing.Your.Halo.2.629718.html. Retrieved on 2008-05-12.
- ^ Wilcox, Joe (August 22, 2008). "The iPhone Halo Effect". Apple Watch - eweek.com. http://blogs.eweek.com/applewatch/content/mac_os_x/the_iphone_halo_effect.html. Retrieved on 2008-09-10.
- ^ Nisbett, R.E. and Wilson, T.D. (1977). Telling more than we can know: Verbal reports on mental processes. Psychological review, 84(3), 231-259.
[edit] Further reading
- Stuart Sutherland (2007). Irrationality: The Enemy Within Second Edition (First Edition 1994) Pinter & Martin. ISBN 978-1905177073
