Brea Talley

First
Impressions
Inquiry Path Project

Brea Talley

Brea Talley
6 October 2015
Ms. Caruso
Inquiry path project

First impressions
Impressions do not merely emerge from the first face to face interaction, impressions are
formed long before. An impression is a combination of various components both verbal and
nonverbal. Whether it be from a telephone conversation, social media, word of mouth or simply
analyzing ones name. Society waste no time when it comes to judging people, we are constantly
inclined to rely on stigmas and stereotypes in order to not only examine one another but figure
each other out . By doing this When we compare people rather than evaluating each one
separately, run counter to the well-known halo effect, in which someone scoring high on one
quality gets higher ratings on other traits. (Marina Krakovsky). This forces people to make
assumptions on peoples character traits and personality, in turn creating a clouded perception of
others true dispositions. Inaccurate speculations are not completely in fault of our twisted
society, human nature plays a big role behind the reasoning as well. As humans we are wired to
make decisions on behavior and survival pretty abruptly (Michelle Trudeau).

A common misconception when it comes to impressions is that they are irreversible. But
on the contrary that is not a true statement, with time and persistence it can be altered. Studies
show that in a spanned of four or more future interactions an initial perception can be altered. If a
person perceives you a mean person after multiple meetings they can realize and understand that
sarcasm is merely your sense of humor, and that mean face is just your general unintentional

Brea Talley
6 October 2015
Ms. Caruso
Inquiry path project

appearance. If we just took the time to not judge a book by their cover, giving them a chance to
prove themselves, altering of impressions would not have to occur. Which would be especially
good considering the fact that most people are reluctant on giving second chances, always
carrying a closed minded opinion of a person or topic.

Within seconds of interaction you are unknowingly categorized, penalized and now carry
a stigma before you even tell them your name due to no fault of your own. Verbal and nonverbal
are both components in which people are judged, but the nonverbal communication is valued and
studied more than verbal. It sets the foundation on what there hypothesis is of your verbal
communication, once again making inferences .Nonverbally one can review your gender, age,
race, sexual orientation, status even intelligence and many other characteristics. Verbally one
analyzes your tone of voice, eye contact when speaking, and grasps a feel for your personality,
and determine if you are articulate or not. Body language, appearance and oral all go hand and
hand and confirm one another.