intercom system. Each man was given a Polaroid of a woman and told (falsely) that it was of the person they’d be chatting to. Some of the Polaroids were of notably attractive women and others were not. Analysis of the conversations that followed indicated that the men appeared to engage with the women under the power of the cultural belief that ‘beautiful people are good people’ – that old Greek idea of kalokagathia. Even though the photos were fake, when the conversations were finished, the men perceived the ‘pretty’ women as being more friendly, likeable and sociable. But the really
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