- Introduction
To begin with, life is unfair. Some people may feel unfairly treated while they are in school or while
they are working and wish they had a better appearance. People who are beautiful or handsome tend
to have higher grades than people who are not as beautiful. Do you believe that there are such effects
caused by one’s looks? Sadly, there are tons of effects caused by one’s appearance. This article
explains the definition of lookism and how looks affect your academic grades from three different
perspectives. - What is lookism?
Lookism is defined as ‘prejudice or discrimination based on physical appearance and especially
physical appearance believed to fall short of societal notions of beauty’ (Merriam-Webster’s
Dictionary). To understand the term deeply and how it is affecting our current society, we need to
learn its history and background to know why the word was made and to identify how it relates to
anyone in this society.
I. History and background
Lookism first appeared around the 1960s in America. At the time, fat people suffered from various
kinds of discrimination caused by their looks. For example, out of the 50 US states, only Michigan
legislated against the punishment of fat employees. So, in 49 states, fat people can be fired or denied
promotions for the reason that they are fat (Dionne, 2019). To deal with such injustice and
discrimination, fat people in America began a movement called “the fat acceptance movement” to
demand the elimination of the discrimination against fatness. Then, those people created the word
“lookism” as a kind of discrimination based on one’s looks, and it appeared in English dictionaries.
Since then, it has attracted the attention of researchers.
II. Lookism in 2022
Even after 40 years have passed since the fat acceptance movement occurred, people are still judging
others by their looks subconsciously. A researcher at the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic
Research (LISER) Luxembourg, DIW Berlin, and IZA Germany found that in the labor business
scene, there is still discrimination against less-attractive employees. Moreover, good-looking people
earn much more money than less-good-looking people (Sierminska, 2015). Even in school, lookism
exists invisibly. Currently, many kinds of harassment, which relate to lookism, exist everywhere.
Thus, it might be too idealistic to create a society without lookism. - Is makeup important?
Can you imagine a life without makeup? People have been putting on makeup since the earliest
cultures known to man. In the 21 st century, the reasons for putting on makeup are different from the
reasons people put on makeup in the past, and it will only keep on changing. The positive effects of
putting on makeup were proven by a group of researchers, whose studies have shown that makeup
positively affects one’s attractiveness, competence, and likeability but not trustworthiness (Etcoff et
al., 2011). However, people with excessive makeup are more likely to be judged as untrustworthy.
Therefore, you need to be careful about how much makeup you put on to receive its positive effects.
Even in the academic scene, students with high attractiveness tend to achieve higher grades than less
attractive ones do. This is because teachers put more time into highly attractive students than others,
but this effect disappears in online lessons (Hoyt, 2018). - Relationship between intelligence and glasses
Most people might have felt that people with glasses look smart. In fact, there are linkages between
intelligence and wearing glasses. People with glasses are more intelligent than people who do not
wear glasses. According to research from the University of Edinburgh, people who wear
glasses have a 30% higher chance of being intelligent (Barr, 2018). Certainly, the glasses should be vision-adaptive and not be plain ones. Even if you want to be an intelligent person and try to get nearsightedness by watching a screen for a long time or reading books in a dark place, it is too late because it depends on your genes. So, you had better study.
- Dress code for better education
Have you ever worn a school uniform? If you have, you might have wondered why the school asked
you to wear them. It has significant positive effects on students’ behavior. A survey in the United
States found out that the wearing of school uniforms creates a better classroom environment for
learning. As a result, students’ academic performance will improve. Since the news broke, the
number of schools that required uniforms has increased by 22% (Ordway, 2018). So, if you
wish to discipline your child, attending such a school is a good idea for both parents and children. - Conclusion
People have been subconsciously judged by their looks since the first humans. However, how one’s
looks influence others is not usually visible and considered. Thus, movements such as “the fat
acceptance movement” have occurred. For those people, people should turn their eyes to terms such
as lookism to accept others and create a better society for all. Also, proper looks have a positive
effect, such as being a more trustworthy person. Therefore, everyone might have a chance to be a
better person depending on effort. If you wish to be a highly academic person, you might want to
consider looking attractive with glasses. Also, do not forget to choose schools with uniforms. - References
Barr, S. (2018). People who wear glasses are more likely to be intelligent, study finds. [online] The
Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/glasses-wearers-more-
intelligent-genes-eyesight-study-university-edinburgh-a8375431.html [Accessed 28 September
2022].
Dionne, E. (2019). Here’s What Fat Acceptance Is—and Isn’t. [online] YES! Magazine. Available at:
https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2019/06/24/fat-acceptance-movement [Accessed 29
September 2022].
Etcoff, N.L., Stock, S., Haley, L.E., Vickery, S.A. and House, D.M. (2011). Cosmetics as a feature of
the extended human phenotype: modulation of the perception of biologically important facial
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Hoyt, E. (2018). Attractive Students Get Higher Grades, According to Study. [online] Fastweb.
Available at: https://www.fastweb.com/student-life/articles/more-attractive-students-get-higher-
grades-according-to-study [Accessed 29 September 2022].
“Lookism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-
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Ordway, D.-M. (2018). School uniforms: Do they really improve student achievement, behavior?
[online] The Journalist’s Resource. Available at: https://journalistsresource.org/education/school-
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Sierminska, E. (2015a). Does it pay to be beautiful? IZA World of Labor. [online]
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