Managing First Impressions: The Role of Acknowledgment Strategies in Reducing Hiring Bias Against Individuals With Visible Facial Differences

ABSTRACT

Although past research has established that people with visible facial differences encounter hiring discrimination, less is known about how this bias may be mitigated. In this paper, we draw on the Social Identity Impression Management theory and Behaviors from Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes (BIAS) map to examine whether the manner in which applicants acknowledge their facial difference can impact their hiring evaluations. This research consisted of a between–participants experimental study with 205 working adults based in India. We found that participants evaluated a job applicant with a visible facial difference more favorably when she acknowledged her facial difference through de‐categorization (de‐emphasizing group membership, while emphasizing some other information about herself) and integration (reframing her stigmatized identity in positive terms) compared to when she did not acknowledge her facial difference. Additionally, we found that admiration reactions mediated the effect of de‐categorization and integration on hiring evaluations. Furthermore, we found that this effect varied across different job types. Relative to no‐acknowledgment, de‐categorization led to more positive evaluations through admiration only for the high‐customer‐contact job, whereas integration was effective for both low and high customer contact jobs. The results have implications for individuals with visible facial differences seeking employment, vocational trainers, and organizational stakeholders.