Clairol survey reveals how color influences personality perceptions
January 2007, Stamford, CT โ Would a blonde or a brunette appear more presidential? Would you sooner trust a brown- or blonde-haired surgeon? Would a redhead make a loyal employee?
The Clairol haircolor team recently posed these and other questions to over 1,000 women (ages 18 plus) nationwide to gauge the influence of hair color on personality perceptions. The results show that blondes are overwhelmingly perceived as fun and flirty, brunettes as smart and serious and redheads as strong.
โHair color is more than just an element of outward appearance โ every shade has a distinct personality,โ explains Brad Johns, celebrity colorist and Global Color Director for Clairol. โWhen a woman colors her hair, she is choosing not only a particular shade but the attitude and image that go with it.โ
Specific findings for the Clairol survey include:
THE COLOR OF POLITICS:
ยง Tight race: When asked to predict what hair color they believed the first female president would have, survey respondents split their vote between brunette and blonde. Interestingly, when Clairol asked the same question in a 2002 and 2004 survey, the majority of women believed the first female president would be a brunette.
A COLORFUL JOB HUNT:
ยง Looking for that โinโ for your next interview? Seventy-six percent of women believe brunette is the best hair color for making a good impression on an interview. Blonde came in second (12 percent) and red last (three percent).
ยง CEOs preferโฆBrunettes! Sixty-seven percent of women said if they were a CEO and could hire only one person based on their hair color, they would hire a brunette. Thirteen percent of women chose redheads and eight percent chose blondes.
THE BEAUTIFUL BLONDE:
ยง Sex appealโฆFlirty blonde icons clearly still hold influence, as more than half of women polled said blonde is the hair color men find sexiest on a woman. Half of women surveyed also chose blonde as the most seductive hair color.
ยง Blondes still have more funโฆMore than half of women surveyed reported that they believe blonde is the most fun-loving hair color.
THE BRILLIANT BRUNETTE:
ยง Seriously speakingโฆMore than three quarters of women surveyed said they associate brunettes with being the most serious. Fifty-six percent also reported that brunette signals the most confidence.
ยง Trust me, Iโm a doctorโฆSeventy-seven percent of respondents said that a brunette doctor would appear the most trustworthy to them. Seventy-two percent of women find brunette to also be the most trustworthy hair color in general.
LADIES IN RED:
ยง They mean businessโฆRedheads were voted most intimidating by half of respondents.
ยง If only for a dayโฆThe majority of women surveyed said that if they could change their hair color for a day, they would choose to go red.
