VOA常速英语2018--科普文：先入为主是可怕的习惯

Which of these politicians would you vote for? They’re the same, right? Not exactly. In an experiment, Danish Researchers modified the real face to make it look more dominant¹ or more feminine. Those subtle changes made a difference, says Princeton University psychology² professor Alexander Todorov.

以下政治家中，你会愿意为哪位投票呢？它们看起来并无差别，对吗？但事实并非如此。在一项实验中，几位丹麦的研究人员对真实的人脸进行了调节，让其看起来更有支配性或者更有女性魅力。这些细微的变化确实有作用，普林斯顿大学心理学教授亚历山大·托多罗夫如是说道。

Right-wing voters were more receptive to the message of this politician, when the message was paired with this more dominant looking face. And liberal voters were more persuaded, when the same message was accompanied by this other image of a more feminine-looking leader.

右翼选民更容易接受一种政治家传递的信息，传递这种信息的政治，其长相看起来更有支配性。而即便传达的信息一样，但自由派选民更容易被说服的情况却截然不同：领导人长相看起来更有女性魅力。

That’s one example from Todorov new book, Face Value. He describes the unconscious judgments³ we make based solely⁴ on looks, and how those judgments have consequences like deciding elections, for example. Todorov has found he could predict most races with a single test. He showed subjects actual campaign photos of opposing candidates, and asked which one is more competent. The candidate, judged more competent based solely on a picture, was the one that won the election 70 percent of the time.

托多罗夫新书里的一个例子，这本书名为《长相的价值》。托多罗夫在书中描述了我们仅凭长相做出的无意识判断，也讲到了这样的判断会有怎样的影响，比如对决定选举谁有什么影响。比如，托多罗夫发现，只需药做一个测试，就能预测出大多数选举结果。他展示了竞争对手的实际竞选照片，然后问选民哪位候选人更有能力。通过图像被判断为更有能力的候选人，70%的时候都赢得了选举。

I was certainly surprised, because this is a really important race. There’s tons of money going into it and there are lots of other variables. And yet we were able to predict a large percentage of the elections.

我当然十分吃惊，因为这是一次非常重要的选举，有大笔资金和其他变量投入。我们对选举预测的把握很大。

Todorov says the effect is strongest on voters who know the least about political issues. That’s not completely irrational⁵, he says.

托多罗夫说，这种作用在一种选民身上体现得最为强烈：对政治问题知之甚少的选民。他说，这是不无道理的。

You can say that people looking for the right information competence⁶ in the wrong place appearance, because it’s easy, and that’s the kind of the story of a lot of the psychology of decision making. To a large extent, we make lots of judgments to rank and short cuts.

可以说人们是通过外貌这种错误的方式来寻找所谓正确的能力评估信息。因为这种判断方式最为容易，这也是很多人做决策时的心理。从很大程度上说，我们的很多决定都是通过捷径来做出的。

For example, studies have found people who look more trustworthy get loans at lower interest rates. Criminals get harsher sentences based on their appearance. Those who got the death sentence appeared more untrustworthy as measured by life observers.

比如，研究表明，看起来更值得信赖的人可以以更低的利率借到贷款。长相更凶狠的罪犯，受到的判罚更重。而被判死刑的人在生活观察员看来，更不值得信赖。

So this is sort of like the extreme examples where that could play an incredibly important role. Now it’s becoming more incompetent⁷ up here.

所以，这些看似极端的例子可能发挥了重要的作用。但其实反而会选出没有能力的人。

Though first impressions are often wrong, Todorov says they are fast and automatic.

虽然第一印象经常是错的，但托多罗夫说，第一印象是自动产生的，速度很快。

It’s very hard to retrain people not to use them. I mean the best you can do, I guess, is make them aware and use different kinds of information, but again it’s easier said than done.

一旦形成，就很难通过再次培训来避免第一印象的自动产生。我觉得，我们能做的就是让选民认识到这一点，并综合考虑不同的信息，但这件事是说起来容易做起来难。

It takes more effort for voters to learn about the candidates, but Todoreov says informed voters are not fooled by first impressions.

让选民了解候选人需要更多的功夫，但托多罗夫表示，知识渊博的选民是不会被第一印象愚弄的。

1 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

2 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

3 judgments   

判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判

参考例句：

• A peculiar austerity marked his judgments of modern life. 他对现代生活的批评带着一种特殊的苛刻。
• He is swift with his judgments. 他判断迅速。

4 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

5 irrational   

adj.无理性的，失去理性的

参考例句：

• After taking the drug she became completely irrational.她在吸毒后变得完全失去了理性。
• There are also signs of irrational exuberance among some investors.在某些投资者中是存在非理性繁荣的征象的。

6 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。

7 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。