Inspired by Evan Frendo’s really interesting post on impression management (IM), I went hunting for research papers in the University of Pennsylvania’s online libraries. Unfortunately there aren’t many linguistics papers to be found on IM, but there are stacks of social psychology ones. As I browsed through them, I came across this. (I kid you not!):
So in other words, talking to pretty girls impairs men’s ability to think. Well, fancy that! Do you have any favourite pieces of research?
7 Comments
Hi Vicki,
Great piece of research and astounding findings! My favourite recent piece of research has to the one which answers the age old question of whether the chicken or the egg came first.
http://bit.ly/altGfo
Mike
Brilliant! But is it only heterosexual men, or does it also apply to gay men? And women are really unaffected by good looking blokes?
Nope…
I was at the gym last week, when, and I kid you not, true story, there were these window cleaners whom um, had found the weather a bit hot… Whispers of Pepsi (tho’ I later did research and found that should have been Diet Coke) abounded and filled the hallways.
It must be said also that operation of all gym machinery proved difficult as the women twisted torsos in order to watch torsos…
On the cognitive front, I would have to report that in my own assessment, very little critical thinking was done.
Of course, this is observational research only and would have to made subject to a deeper investigation.
Darren and Karenne, when I read it I thought ‘and they needed to do a study to work that out?’ But after reading your comments it’s quite clear that on the contrary, follow up studies are needed! Ha!
Oh, and I nominated it to the folks at the ig nobel prizes and they’ve said it’s certainly a contender!
Oh great study, Mike! Thank you!!! I reckon that chicken and egg study has to be another ig nobel award contender.
Glad to know that it isn’t really my fault then : )
Not your fault? Ha! Love it! But hang on a moment, Adam. I doubt my female readers would be willing to interpret these findings as extending that far!
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