Women in the workplace have fought a long battle to prove their skills, experience and CV are the only keys to their success.
But their efforts may have been in vain, as a study find good looks, a winning smile and a little gentle flirtation may be the key to securing a job after all.
Bosses would rather hire someone they find attractive and enjoy spending time with than the perfectly-qualified candidate, it has been claimed.
They would rather employ someone “who will be their friend or maybe even their romantic partner”, with whom they feel a “spark”, researchers have suggested.
A study, conducted by American sociologists, has found interviewers at banking, law and management consultancy firms consistently prefer applicants they “feel good around”.
More than half of employers claim attractiveness, the right social background and how candidates spend their leisure time are the most important considerations when hiring, it is claimed.
Dr Lauren Rivera, from Northwestern University in the United States, found interviewers often put their personal feelings of comfort, acceptance and excitement first.
Half of those studied ranked “cultural fit” as the most important criterion at job interview stage, meaning they were more likely to hire someone with the same “l(fā)eisure pursuits, background and self-presentation” as current staff.
"Of course employers are looking for people who have the baseline of skills to effectively do the job,” she said.
"But, beyond that, employers really want people who they will bond with, who they will feel good around, who will be their friend and maybe even their romantic partner.
“As a result, employers don't necessarily hire the most skilled candidates."
The study, based on 120 interviews and published in the American Sociological Review, is the first investigation of its kind into whether shared culture between employers and job candidates matters.研究人員稱，雇主更傾向于雇傭自己喜歡的員工，因?yàn)樗麄冇X得“消遣方式、社會(huì)背景以及自我表達(dá)方式”比技能重要得多。
職場(chǎng)中的女性為證明她們擁有的技能、經(jīng)驗(yàn)及簡(jiǎn)歷才是她們?nèi)〉贸晒Φ年P(guān)鍵已經(jīng)斗爭(zhēng)已久。
然而，她們所付出的努力都可能是徒勞的。研究表明，美麗的容貌、迷人的笑容以及適度的調(diào)情舉動(dòng)或許才是穩(wěn)住工作的關(guān)鍵。
研究還發(fā)現(xiàn)，老板寧愿雇傭那些有魅力、更喜歡與之在一起的雇員，也不愿招聘完全合格的求職者。
研究人員表示，老板寧愿雇傭那些“可能成為其朋友、甚至情侶”的雇員，因?yàn)榕c他們?cè)谝黄饡?huì)有種“來電”的感覺。
美國(guó)的社會(huì)學(xué)家進(jìn)行的一項(xiàng)研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，銀行、律所及管理咨詢公司的雇主無一例外青睞那些讓他們“感到舒服”的求職者。
研究表明，超過半數(shù)的雇主都認(rèn)為吸引力、合適的社會(huì)背景以及求職者的消遣方式是他們招聘員工時(shí)最首要的考慮因素。
來自美國(guó)西北大學(xué)的勞倫?里維拉博士發(fā)現(xiàn)，雇主往往會(huì)把個(gè)人的舒適、接受和興奮的感覺放在首位。
半數(shù)受調(diào)查者將“文化契合度”列為求職面試階段最為重要的衡量標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，這也就是說他們更傾向于雇傭與現(xiàn)有員工有著相同“消遣方式、社會(huì)背景以及自我表達(dá)方式”的員工。
她表示，“當(dāng)然，雇主也希望雇傭那些具備可以有效完成工作的基本技能的人”。
“不過，除此以外，雇主確實(shí)也想雇傭能相處融洽、讓他們覺得舒服、可以成為其朋友甚至情侶的人”。
“所以這樣一來，雇主不一定會(huì)雇傭最有能力的求職者”。
該項(xiàng)研究取材于120名受訪者的采訪實(shí)錄，并發(fā)表在《美國(guó)社會(huì)學(xué)評(píng)論》上。它首次以獨(dú)特視角探尋了雇主與求職者間文化契合是否重要這一問題。
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