French University Study Finds Blondes Make Men Act Dumb

OldTigerCub

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OldTigerCub
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This article in the TimesOnline caught my interest. It seems that a social psychology study done by researchers from the University of Paris X-Nanterre has come to the conclusion that blondes make men act foolish:

WHEN men meet fair-haired women they really do have a “blonde moment”. Scientists have found that their mental performance drops, apparently because they believe they are dealing with someone less intelligent.

Researchers discovered what might be called the “bimbo delusion” by studying men’s ability to complete general knowledge tests after exposure to different women. The academics found that men’s scores fell after they were shown pictures of blondes.

Further analysis convinced the team that, rather than simply being distracted by the flaxen hair, those who performed poorly had been unconsciously driven by social stereotypes to “think blonde”.

“This proves that people confronted with stereotypes generally behave in line with them,” said Thierry Meyer, joint author of the study and professor of social psychology at the University of Paris X-Nanterre. “In this case blondes have the potential to make people act in a dumber way, because they mimic the unconscious stereotype of the dumb blonde.”
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So the idea that blondes are dumb is an illusion, guys...it's we that turn dumber in their presence. Hey, it looks like real science to me! It certainly explains why we get that stupid expression on our faces when a pretty blonde woman walks into a room!:p
 
Hmm... This exists as an actual social stereotype somewhere?

I guess there are too many intelligent natural blondes around these part for this to last very long.
 
That funding goes into this type of "research" says it all, doesn't it?

TAM:)
 
I do find when I get my hair too light that people treat me like I don't have a brain... like only talking at a fourth grade level to me. I've gone with streaks only, and with other confidence boosting happenings in my life, have had much greater success getting some respect. I'm also very short, and look younger than my age, which really never helped. I had to work hard to give a better first impression. I still have a tough time with people that I don't know well. I think there is some merit to the study.

First impressions are tough to deal with. It's always better once people get to know each other.
 
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T.A.M. said:
That funding goes into this type of "research" says it all, doesn't it?

TAM:)
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Hehe....chalk up another way of finding busy-work for idle hands. At least it appears that it was the French wasting their money.
(I could have told them that from my "research"...at the local watering hole/pickup bar) :D
 
Hey, but studies do legitimize our observations, don't they? And it may seem like money wasted... but I bet it was fun. :p
 
Eos of the Eons said:
Hey, but studies do legitimize our observations, don't they? And it may seem like money wasted... but I bet it was fun. :p
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I think the study does show a direct connection between perceived stereotypes and the bahavior such stereotypes provoke (even if it is involuntary or on a subconcious level).
I found the comments by two prominent blonde women rather interesting, though:

Real-life blondes were sceptical about the findings. Laura Bailey, the Marks & Spencer model, said: “I’ve always been taken very seriously. I have always been blonde and I have never had an issue with the way I am. If I’m being insulted, then I’m blissfully unaware.”

Michelle Collins, the blonde-haired former EastEnders actress, suspected the results were more to do with men’s approach to sex than intelligence. “I don’t think it’s to do with hair at all; it’s all about the breasts,” she said.

“But if someone walks round with extensions down to their bottom, even I would treat them differently.”
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It's just human nature. You try not to be tooo smart for the people around you. ;)
 
The only time I've made a real fool of myself over a woman it involved a green-eyed redhead with great legs. Make of that what you will, Mr/Ms Researcher. I don't regret it.
 
It sounds interesting but the article wasn't very informative. They don't mention anything about the methodology of the study, so how are we expected to make any conclusions?

I also thought the comment at the end of the article was ridiculous:
Some blondes are of course highly intelligent. Susan Greenfield is an Oxford professor of pharmacology and director of the Royal Institution. The actress Joanna Lumley is a noted environmentalist and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
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Roboramma said:
It sounds interesting but the article wasn't very informative. They don't mention anything about the methodology of the study, so how are we expected to make any conclusions?

I also thought the comment at the end of the article was ridiculous:
:
Some blondes are of course highly intelligent. Susan Greenfield is an Oxford professor of pharmacology and director of the Royal Institution. The actress Joanna Lumley is a noted environmentalist and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
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Granted, it was pretty brief. I think that the conclusion was accurate though. It might be a bit presumptuous on my part, but it seems that sociologically speaking, they hit the nail on the head. Speaking from experience (50 years of it ) we men are just suckers for light hair and a pretty smile....:D

Eos of the Eons cited some pretty good examples,though, of her first hand experiences, from a woman's point of view, with a great deal of insight into the implications of the stereotype that has been associated with women with light colored hair.
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Well, it's good that I'm a brunette, then I'll know that the dumb guys I meet, really are dumb... always ;)
 
Like CapelDodger it's redheads that make me act stupid.

I guess I really am a freak. :)


one of us! one of us! one of us! one of us! one of us! one of.......aw forget it.
 
Just caught the last half of a programme on tv last night where three women conducted an experiment on being blonde. Of the 3 women, 1 was a natuaral blond age 30, 1 a brunette age 28, 1 black woman age 33 (don't know the PC term to describe her but it is important to note her colour).

They asked people how old they thought they were (the blonde was always scored as being much younger than she was), the other were usually scored as being either what age they were or older. Then they pretended they were broken down on the side of the road and the blonde was responded to more rapidly than the others, and also asked silly questions such as - are you out of gas? They went to a bar, and the blonde was hit on more times than the other two.

Then the three changed their hair colours. The blonde became brunette, and the other 2 became blonde. They repeated the above experiments. The new brunette noted that people treated her differently and talked more seriously to her, whereas the 2 new blondes noted that they were talked down to more often. Also, the new blondes were scored as being younger, received more help when the car was broken down, and were hit upon in the bar more often.

They asked the women whether they would keep their new hair colours. The real blonde said she would stay brunette for awhile because she enjoyed being taken seriously. The real brunette was changing back to brunette. The black woman (who wore a wig instead of dying her hair) said she would use the wig for having fun at clubs but would wear her natural hair during business.
 
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