There's a general perception that people dressed professionally are better at whatever they do.
I admit that I buy into this somewhat - but it's more "the people who dress appropriately for their profession are more likely to be following the other rules of their profession more competently as well." It is not a guarantee that the physician who dresses smartly is a better surgeon, but I would probably not trust that the physician who dresses in shorts and a t-shirt will have a good bedside manner, since they are either oblivious to or unconcerned with the social signals they're sending.
I do realize this is very circular - people who follow the completely arbitrary rules are better at projecting an aura of being able to follow the rules, whatever the rules are. And I also don't know how much I think it ought to matter for the generally non-people-facing professions.
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winterfish
no subject
Date: 2008-12-19 09:22 pm (UTC)I admit that I buy into this somewhat - but it's more "the people who dress appropriately for their profession are more likely to be following the other rules of their profession more competently as well." It is not a guarantee that the physician who dresses smartly is a better surgeon, but I would probably not trust that the physician who dresses in shorts and a t-shirt will have a good bedside manner, since they are either oblivious to or unconcerned with the social signals they're sending.
I do realize this is very circular - people who follow the completely arbitrary rules are better at projecting an aura of being able to follow the rules, whatever the rules are. And I also don't know how much I think it ought to matter for the generally non-people-facing professions.