Social proverbs, while sometimes imparting truth about society, can contradict one another. One example of a set of conflicting proverbs is “the clothes make the man” and “never judge a book by its cover”. Both proverbs comment on the importance of appearances in social settings, but the two directly gainsay each other. This paper will attempt to determine whether psychological research supports one proverb over the other. An important framework in the analysis of the two proverbs is the concept of top-down processing. Top-down processing is the manner in which past experiences or pre-conceived notions change how new information is interpreted (Gazzaniga, Heatherton, & Halpern, 2016). Three examples of top-down processing are anchoring, stereotypes, and self-fulfilling prophecies. Through the analysis of these three types of top-down processing, it can be determined which proverb more accurately describes society.

Anchoring is the simplest of the three types of top-down processing; it is the proneness to primarily use the first or most readily-accessible piece of information when passing judgment (Gazzaniga et al, 2016). More simply, it is the concept of first impressions affecting later decisions. Anchoring comes into play when, rather than assessing all information based on its merits, individuals put greater value on earlier information despite possible inaccuracies.

Psychologists Fabrice Desmarais and Toni Bruce found evidence of anchoring in a 2010 study the two conducted regarding the effect of anchoring on rugby commentaries. In the study, Desmarais and Bruce (2010) noted the frequency at which New Zealand commentators attributed perceived violence to the opposing players’ French nationality. The two draw attention to a particular 1967 rugby game between France and New Zealand that gave the French team a reputation for excessive violence among New Zealanders (Desmarais & Bruce, 2010). Desmarais and Bruce (2010) also suggested that the observations made by New Zealand commentators were not present and/or not attributed to nationality when viewed by French commentators. It is for this reason that the two concluded that it is anchoring to the New Zealander beliefs about the 1967 game rather than the actual merits of the players’ actions that cause the commentators to make these attributions (Desmarais & Bruce, 2010).

Desmarais and Bruce’s study relates to the proverbs in that both proverbs concern the formation of first impressions. The proverb “never judge a book by its cover” warns against the use of first impressions in judgment while the proverb “the clothes make the man” suggests that first impressions can be legitimate in judgments of character. The study more strongly supports “never judge a book by its cover” for Desmarais and Bruce (2010) point out that the actions the commentators assign value to are relatively insignificant; it is instead only the tendency towards anchoring that causes those actions to be attributed to certain characteristics. The study does not directly refute the proverb “the clothes make the man”, but it does suggest that judgments based upon aspects other than a piece of information’s merits could be insignificant or inaccurate.

Another type of top-down processing is the use of stereotypes. Stereotypes are simplifications that allow for quick judgment of individuals based upon their membership in a group (Gazzaniga et al, 2016). The most common stereotypes are those regarding racial membership, sex, or nationality, but stereotypes towards members of certain socioeconomic classes or education levels can also be held. Stereotypes are used when an individual makes a judgment of another based upon group membership instead of individual merits. Anchoring can further the effects of stereotypes in that individuals must first overcome the effects of anchoring to judgments based on stereotypes before they can prove themselves based upon merit.

Psychologists Ian Walker, Ian Garrard, and Felicity Jowitt tested the effect of stereotypes of cyclists’ experience level on the distance at which drivers overtook cyclists on the road. Cyclists were outfitted with 7 different sets of clothing, ranging from a vest with the word “POLICE” printed upon the back, to an outfit resembling that of a professional cyclist, to an outfit resembling that of casual cyclist (2013). The researchers predicted that drivers would judge cyclists’ skill level based upon the clothing they wore and would overtake at varying distance to accommodate (Walker, Garrard, & Jowitt, 2013). When comparing the average overtaking distances, driver overtook the cyclists who appeared to be police officers or casual cyclists at slightly farther distances than those who appeared as racers or commuters (2013). However, the researchers note that the only differences in distance that were statistically significant were those for the cyclist wearing the police vest (Walker et al, 2013). However, it is also noted that the difference in overtaking distance was likely due to the words “CAMERA CYCLIST” on the vest as opposed to any stereotype of cyclist experience (Walker et al, 2013). For this reason, the researchers concluded that the differences in overtaking distances were not due to stereotypes of cyclists (Walker et al, 2013).

The study conducted by Walker, Garrard, and Jowitt refutes the proverb “the clothes make the man” by demonstrating that social behavior was not influenced by clothing or appearances. If the clothes did indeed make the man, it would be expected that drivers would assign more value to the clothing the cyclists wore and overtake at distances based upon perceived cycling skill. Instead, drivers appeared to place little to no value on cyclist appearance, only increasing distance when it appeared as if they were being monitored (Walker et al, 2013).

A third type of top-down processing is the creation of self-fulfilling prophecies. Self-fulfilling prophecies are expectations that cause an individual to behave in a way that supports the original expectations (Gazzaniga et al, 2016). Individuals utilize self-fulfilling prophecies in reasoning by interpreting actions that correspond with expectations as accuracy of those expectations while ignoring the possibility that their expectations are what is shaping the observed actions. Self-fulfilling prophecies can be a combination of stereotypes and anchoring when individuals derive their expectations from stereotypes and anchor to the perceived accuracy of those stereotypes.

Psychologists Yonat Zwebner, Anne-Laure Sellier, Nir Rosenfield, Jacob Goldenberg, and Ruth Mayo take an interesting take on the idea of self-fulfilling prophecies by studying the effect of given names on facial appearance. Through the use of a computer program, researchers assessed the correlation between 94,000 faces and given names (Zwebner, Sellier, Rosenfield, Goldenberg, & Mayo, 2017). The researchers found that there is a statistically significant correlation between facial appearance and given name (Zwebner et al, 2017). Because given name almost always precedes the development of distinct facial appearance, the researchers suggest that given name causes some changes in facial appearance, most likely that social expectations of the given name cause individuals to match expectations appearance-wise (Zwebner et al, 2017). In this way, the relation between given name and facial appearance is said to be a self-fulfilling prophecy in that social expectations of a name cause matching facial appearances which support social expectations (Zwebner et al, 2017). An important factor that the researchers noted was that the most strongly correlated facial aspects were controllable elements of appearance such as hairstyle (Zwebner et al, 2017).

The study on facial appearances and given names refutes both proverbs in that it appears to be a relation between appearance and characteristics, “judging a book by its cover”, but appearance does not shape characteristics and characteristics instead shape appearance. If the word “clothes” can be abstracted to mean simply appearances then in this case, “the man makes the clothes” as opposed the other way around.

A 1990 study conducted by John Marshall Townsend and Gary D. Levy on the effect of clothing on sexuality and sexual partner selection ties together all three analyzed types of top-down processing: anchoring, stereotypes, and self-fulfilling prophecies. In the study, Townsend and Levy exposed college students to six photos of two different models, one of high-rated attractiveness and one of low rated attractiveness, dressed in three different types of clothing, each corresponding to a different socioeconomic status (1990). Participants then rated the models based upon likelihood to choose the model as a sexual partner and upon the model’s physical attractiveness (Townsend & Marshall, 1990). Results demonstrated that the effect clothing had on partner preference varied more greatly when the model was previously rated as low attractiveness than when the partner had been rated to be highly attractive (Townsend & Marshall, 1990). Additionally, clothing showed no statistically significant difference in attractiveness ratings for males observing female models (Townsend & Marshall, 1990). Here, the study both supports and refutes the proverb “the clothes make the man”. While nicer clothing increased preference for the model with low attractiveness, it had little effect for the model who was already rated to be physically attractive. In this way, the clothes can make the man sometimes. Furthermore, clothing had little effect on the rating of attractiveness for females. This suggests that, if the proverb is taken literally, clothes may make the man, but they do not make the woman.

When considering these four studies, there is evidence to support and to refute both proverbs. This is likely why both proverbs have endured; they are both accurate in different situations. If one proverb was grossly more accurate than the other, only one of the two would have survived the test of time. Perhaps further research can support one proverb more strongly than the other, but when analyzing the proverbs under the framework of top-down processing and with the referenced studies, it appears as if both proverbs are equally accurate and inaccurate.

 

 

References

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0261927X10368836

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Townsend, J. M., & Levy, G. D. (1990). Effects of potential partners' costume and physical

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Walker, I., Garrard, I., & Jowitt, F. (2014). The influence of a bicycle commuter's appearance on

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2013.11.007

Zwebner, Y., Sellier, A.-L., Rosenfeld, N., Goldenberg, J., & Mayo, R. (2017). We look like our

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