The teddy bear effect: does babyfaceness benefit Black CEOs?

Prior research suggests that having a baby face is negatively correlated with success among White males in high positions of leadership. However, we explored the positive role of such “babyfaceness” in the success of high-ranking Black executives. Two studies revealed that Black chief executive officers (CEOs) were significantly more baby-faced than White CEOs. Black CEOs were also judged as being warmer than White CEOs, even though ordinary Blacks were rated categorically as being less warm than ordinary Whites. In addition, baby-faced Black CEOs tended to lead more prestigious corporations and earned higher salaries than mature-faced Black CEOs; these patterns did not emerge for White CEOs. Taken together, these findings suggest that babyfaceness is a disarming mechanism that facilitates the success of Black leaders by attenuating stereotypical perceptions that Blacks are threatening. Theoretical and practical implications for research on race, gender, and leadership are discussed

Older and younger adults’ accuracy in discerning health and competence in older and younger faces

We examined older and younger adults’ accuracy judging the health and competence of faces. Accuracy differed significantly from chance and varied with face age but not rater age. Health ratings were more accurate for older than younger faces, with the reverse for competence ratings. Accuracy was greater for low attractive younger faces, but not for low attractive older faces. Greater accuracy judging older faces’ health was paralleled by greater validity of attractiveness and looking older as predictors of their health. Greater accuracy judging younger faces’ competence was paralleled by greater validity of attractiveness and a positive expression as predictors of their competence. Although the ability to recognize variations in health and cognitive ability is preserved in older adulthood, the effects of face age on accuracy and the different effects of attractiveness across face age may alter social interactions across the life span. (APA PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved

Staff attitudes towards aggression in health care: a review of the literature

The aim of this literature review was to explore the attitudes of health care workers towards inpatient aggression and to analyse the extent to which attitudes, as defined from a theoretical point of view, were addressed in the selected studies. Databases from 1980 up to the present were searched, and a content analysis was done on the items of the selected studies. The concepts 'cognition' and 'attitude' from the framework of 'The Theory of Reasoned Action' served as categories. The self-report questionnaire was the most common instrument used and three instruments specifically designed to measure attitudes were found. These instruments lacked profound validity testing. From a total of 74 items, two thirds focussed on cognitions and only a quarter really addressed attitudes towards aggression. Research was particularly concerned with the cognitions that nurses had about aggression, and attitudes were studied only to a limited extent. Researchers used different instruments, which makes it difficult to compare results across settings

The influence of political skill on the acceptance of foreign nationals at the home country organization: an examination of cultural stigmatization

The purpose of this article is to examine the impact of the four dimensions of political skill (i.e. social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability and apparent sincerity) on the relationship between the cultural stigmatization of a foreign national and their level of acceptance by headquarter personnel as measured by the frequency of interaction. Grounded in self-congruity theory, we examine the dynamics involved in overcoming various stigmatizing marks of foreign nationals as they interact in a home country organization environment. Implications for practitioners are consequently discussed