Chic Hairdo and Mascara Might Get Looked At--and Listened To

The better your appearance, the better people remember what you say, studies by a Scripps College professor indicate.

Lynn Carol Miller says that studying hundreds of students over a five-year period has led her to conclude that communication between people can be enhanced by such things as the right hairdo and proper application of cosmetics on the speaker and by information-evoking cues from the listener.

The more “uh huhs,” “hmmmms” and “reallys” a person gives out while listening to someone, the more information one gets in return, Miller says.

The 32-year-old assistant professor of psychology believes that her findings have the potential for improving the quality of people’s lives.

Miller says that hearing, listening and remembering are different processes and that they can vary according to factors other than those the ears pick up.

While still at the University of Texas at Austin, where she earned her doctorate in social psychology, Miller started recording communication between married and dating couples to study the importance of communication in marital satisfaction. She said she has applied for a grant to continue and expand those studies.

During her five years of teaching at Scripps College in Claremont, Miller has joined other researchers in publishing results of her studies on the effects of appearance and listening on communication.

Miller’s study on wearing makeup shows that people remember better what is said when the speaker is attractive. For evidence, she used three videotapes of the same “star,” a woman talking to friends. The woman’s appearance was altered in each version of the tape, going from plain to pretty. Separate audiences of both sexes watched the films, then answered true-false questions about the dialogue, which was the same in each video.

The results could be of benefit to the cosmetics industry. People remembered more accurately what the star said when she wore professionally applied makeup and when her hair was prettily fluffed. The audience didn’t remember as much when she was without makeup and her hair was pulled back.

“If you really want to be remembered, it pays to be concerned” about how you look, Miller said.

For listeners who want to elicit more information, Miller describes her feedback process.

Miller said tests she conducted on 100 of her college students revealed that good listeners are the ones who give listener cues, such as saying “uh huh,” or “yes,” nodding the head, smiling, or making eye contact, all of which encourage the speaker to open up more. She calls this regulating communication, in which timing is a fine art. She said she has observed it even among small children. Maybe they’ll grow up with a big advantage, she said.

“Being a good listener, getting people to tell you things, would be a very important attribute,” Miller said.

She noted two areas where good communications can be vital--in marriage and in a career.

“I’ve found one of the most serious problems in relationships that can lead to divorce is (faulty) family communications,” she said.

“As a manager, it’s very important to pay attention to cues that subordinates are giving you, so you can be sure what the problems are. It’s hard to imagine an occupation that good listening would not benefit.”

Miller said she has not figured out whether good listeners are born or made, but she reasons that women appear to have some advantages in communication. When she tested 700 college students on their ability to elicit information from each other, women scored higher in listening skills than their male partners. Women also use cosmetics and not many men have done so.

And just how did Miller manage to get that many students to participate?

Well, she uses makeup and her hair is prettily fluffed.

“It can’t hurt. It might help. It might be an enhancement in social interaction,” she said as she regulated communication with lots of smiles and nods.