Ritical Thinking. Physical appearance in winning of elections - Essay Example

CRITICAL THINKING Physical appearance has an upper hand in winning of elections. Discrimination has been an issue of concern for many years. Its roots deepened in the 19th century when most of the cities in America prohibited people with unsightly body figures from appearing in the public. This discrimination went farther to a fact that it described unsightly people as those who are diseased, maimed, mutilated, or deformed. These people were not supposed to be seen in any public places, and if so, they were to be fined for each appearance.

Over the years, the countries have tried to fight against this law and have partially succeeded. There has been an expansion in the protection against prejudice to involve race, belief, gender, epoch, disability, and, sexual chauvinism. Though there is an improvement in these fields, outward show remains allowable in many states. Appearance has affected many grounds including the political arena. It has been proven that beauty among politicians has resulted to political victory (Berggren, 2006).

During election campaigns, a certain group of people evaluates many traits to make one acceptable. History of past winning candidates show that beauty results to greater success than proficiency, intellect, amiability, or reliability. Some people have tried to compare the gender that is likely to get affected by this phenomenon in a greater way. Men are not exceptions, but the women are highly affected. Due to this stipulation, many people have taken it upon themselves to study this aspect of victory.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has covered a research to provide information whether people vote for beauty. Most of their study was just a confirmatory process because, just like Disney Villains, the political processes seem to suffer from obsessions with outward looks. Many people might employ the factor of being pretty in this matter, but it is essential to note that it runs deeper than that. Stereotypical candidates seem to have greater chances in the victorious struggle. The candidates that appear to have achieved success in all grounds have greater chances of winning.

This is the reason prettiness should be accompanied by the physical gloss. It is important to keep in mind that history has it that good-looking candidates or even beautiful ones have good chances of taking over in the elections (Thinkstock, 2011). Due to the above factors, many people have sought to believe that worth in the society is based on physical appearance. For this reason, many people acquire votes for being thin, muscular, and good looking. This is because these characteristics are linked with popularity, strength, hard work, and above all victorious.

If a person with the above characteristics vies for a seat with another individual with a fat stature, he is likely to win. This is because people associate fatness with unattractiveness, sluggishness, lack of knowledge, being hated, and feeble (Johnson, 2010). However, people can at least try to counter this problem by dressing in the right clothes, using right words, and acting in an acceptable manner. This could earn an individual who lacks physical attractiveness some votes simply because of acting smart (Johnson, 2010).

Most politicians have their past lives hidden hence their biographies are either too shallow or are missing. Due to this people do not vote in regard to competence but to the likability of the voters. Many political candidates have to influence the public to vote for them through posters. These posters are usually inclusive of one self-portrait. It is clear that during the voting period, many people who do not know the politicians physically will result to a memory check-up. The most memorable politician is ne that had a good portrait on their posters.

The attractiveness is contributed by the physical up build. For this reason, it is essential to realize that the attractiveness of a certain candidate influences most of the voters’ behavioral actions (Rosar, 2007). For many years, stereotypes have always taken the upper hand in decision-making. It is no different when it comes to the political field. People have believed that what is beautiful is good and this policy has already gone along way. This is a highly accepted phenomenon in the social psychology since it has been proven true.

Physical and vocal attractiveness have major roles to play in the impressions one has to create. It is always advantageous if they are of high quality and acceptable. References Berggren, N. e. ( 2006, September 24). The Looks of a Winner: Beauty, Gender and Electoral Success. Retrieved 12 5, 2011, from Institute for the Study of Labor: < http://ftp.iza.org/dp2311.pdf >. Johnson, B. (2010, April 15). The ugly truth about beauty. Retrieved December 05, 2011, from Blog at WordPress: http://mpjournalism.wordpress.com Rosar, U.

(2007, September 17). The frog pond beauty contest: Physical attractiveness and electoral success of the constituency candidates at the North Rhine-Westphalia state election of 2005. Retrieved December 05, 2011, from European Journal of Research: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-6765.2007.00720.x/full Thinkstock. (2011, October 25). Do We Vote for Attractive Candidates? Retrieved December 05, 2011, from Beauty: http://shine.yahoo.com/fashion/do-we-vote-for-attractive-candidates-2595859.html