"Good Looks do not Help"

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Abstract
Female subjects who took a knowledge test could ask another female whose photograph they thought was available to them for help on items they could not answer. The photograph actually depicted one of two persons—a physically attractive or unattractive female. Half the subjects expected a face-to-face meeting with the partner in the future, while the other half did not expect a future interaction. The results indicated that subjects were more reluctant to seek help from a physically attractive other than from a physically unattractive other, and that they were more reluctant to seek help from another female with whom a face-to-face meeting was expected than from one with whom such a meeting was not expected. Between-cell comparisons indicated that, in line with the hypothesis, least help was sought from a physically attractive other when a future meeting had been expected. The implications of these data for help-seeking behavior are discussed in terms of self-presentation processes.

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