Comments on: The Halo Effect: When Your Own Mind is a Mystery

By: Meredith M.

Meredith M. — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 23:56:28 +0000

The basic idea of the halo affect is the subtle assumptions you make without realizing. One study had one professor act nice in one teaching session and then act demeaning in another. The students who saw him in the demeaning session remembered him as a much fouler looking man. These assumptions are because of the halo affect.

One thought I have is about the celebrities. The article says we think of them as people to look up to who are intellegent and beautiful. However, in todays time it seems that celebrities are getting harder and harder to look up to. It is very rare to find a real celebrity who has great moral standing.

By: Nosilrub

Nosilrub — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:26:00 +0000

It seems to me the crucial distinction in the argument about the Harvard logo is whether they are fraudulently placing the logo on books not produced by Harvard. If this is the case, it's not the Halo effect just a misrepresentation. It's perfectly reasonable to assume a book produced by Harvard would be better and therefore command a higher price than a comparable book not produced by Harvard unless they're merely creating the illusion that it was created by Harvard. So when you say that "Without the Harvard name, people will pay less for the same book" do you mean they will pay less for a 'similar' book not produced by Harvard or for that same exact identical book just sans the logo? If they do the former with the full knowledge that it's not actually produced by Harvard, THAT is the Halo Effect.

By: Jitendra

Jitendra — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 04:45:00 +0000

Nice article. I think this is same as color shading effect. When a filled red circle is inclosed by yellow circle, we can see shades of red in yellow circle and vice versa. I feel mind stores each piece of information in perforated pots which continueously leak into each other, to give each other their own shade..!

By: Marisa Duma

Marisa Duma — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 22:48:00 +0000

Just by smiling sincerely would make a person likeable. Being influential - now that is another issue.

Presentation does matter anyhow. Not just about making an influential appearance but also developing an aura of presence in the room.

By: Steve

Steve — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:31:00 +0000

In Ugar's comment, he didn't seem to notice that publishers can charge double the price for the identical book as long as it has the Harvard name on it. Without the Harvard name, people will pay less for the same book.

By: David

David — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 07:30:00 +0000

The article and comments makes fascinating reading regarding the Halo effect. Don't we all put on a Mask in order to get the coveted 'Halo'?

By: Roland

Roland — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 18:00:00 +0000

This actually is quite fascinating when considering smear campaigns. If these findings are correct, and people are really as ignorant of their psychological processes regarding the halo effect, then smear campaigns are always successful, even if disproven. The only concern in doing a smear campaign then, would be to insure that it reaches as many people as possible.

By: Jeremy (PsyBlog author)

Jeremy (PsyBlog author) — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 12:58:00 +0000

James, I think what you're saying is that the participants were conscious of their decision but hid it when asked directly.

This is an unlikely alternative because first, is embarrassment a strong enough motivator to cause this effect? Second, why were people happy to report the opposite, i.e. that his accent or appearance affected how likeable he was. Surely this is just as embarrassing? Third, other studies get these sorts of results where embarrassment is an extremely unlikely explanation.

Nice try though!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 11:44:00 +0000

Seems like good ol' fashioned Charisma to me.

-The Charmer :j

By: James

James — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 07:57:00 +0000

On the other hand, students who found the professor likeable could have intentionally given him the higher ratings, and those the reverse done the opposite. In other words, because they found this trait particularly important (which is likely, given that it was especially drawn out), they added weight to it by increasing the overall review of the professor in other areas. And when confronted directly about it--being asked, "are you sure you didn't just say these things because you found him likeable/dislikeable?" they would vehemently deny it to avoid the embarrassment of being found out, or as a case of cognitive dissonance..