People often tend to judge attractive individuals to have higher morality, better mental health, and ... [+]
Could the halo effect be helping or hurting your attracting patients and clients?
Shelly Gattlieb is fascinated with how the halo effect impacts the way clients and patients choose professionals like doctors and lawyers and the like. Her research can not only help physicians and attorneys, but marketing agencies, strategic consultants, business planners, financial planners, and business coaches as well.
“Physician selection decision practices are impacted by many biases of the patient, on both the conscious and unconscious level,” says Gattlieb. “Some people will feel obligated to use a certain doctor that may be their neighbor or a friend of their family. In other cases, a halo effect may take place when one positive trait outweighs other factors.”
According to writer Ayesh Perera in Simply Psychology, 100 years ago the American psychologist Edward Thorndike first recognized the halo effect with empirical evidence in his article, “A Constant Error in Psychological Ratings.” Simply put, the halo effect is a mental bias that happens when the view of someone is positively influenced by our beliefs about that person’s other traits. Perera states the halo effect “can shape our perception of others’ intelligence and competence.” It can be seen in many settings including the selection of a doctor, marketing agency or consultant.
“An example of the halo effect is the attractiveness stereotype, which refers to the tendency to assign positive qualities and traits to physically attractive people,” writes Perera. “People often tend to judge attractive individuals to have higher morality, better mental health, and greater intelligence.”
Gattlieb is a business psychologist who resides in Carmel, Indiana. She studied how patients choose physicians when she received her PhD in business psychology from The Chicago School of Psychology. She is also a writer, a psychology professor, and works as an advisor with nonprofit organizations.
She finds it fascinating how many people may be influenced by an irrelevant feature, such as office decor, to the point of overlooking board certifications and medical credentials. She has spoken with highly intelligent, well-educated people who will base their medical care on the friendliness of reception staff or adequate parking.
“This is important for both physicians and patients to identify,” according to Gattlieb.
She says for physicians, it is pertinent to be aware of the contaminating factors that could potentially barricade them from their target patient base. For patients, it is essential to prioritize what expertise they are seeking and focus on the experts in the field who seem to be most qualified for the assignment.
“Is the referral coming from someone you know and trust with your healthcare, or from a stranger on the NextDoor app?” says Gattlieb.
She says of course it is best to make your decisions based on the most qualified applicant, and that's difficult to do when you are the amateur who is hiring someone based on the premise of their expertise. On the other hand, making yourself attractive to potential clients is a business in itself.
“When someone gives me a medical recommendation, the first question I ask is always, ‘Why do you recommend them?’” says Gattlieb. “There is a huge difference between ‘my scars are barely visible’ and ‘he was able to get me in right away.’ Unfortunately, these biases exist within the medical profession as well. “When my father needed triple-bypass surgery, I had a nurse recommend a cardiovascular surgeon over others because he was friendlier to his staff.”
Gattlieb concludes that in many professions there is a huge advantage that comes from word of mouth and that's not necessarily a bad thing.
“We've been taught to build our brand, network and create a strong reputation,” says Gattlieb. “However, the reason that the medical field deviates from the norm is that in some instances, you may not get a second chance. I also know many people who wish they could go back in time and hire a different divorce attorney.”
