Hire Me!

Hire Me!

While the next post was planned to be part 2 of the Impacted Tooth Story (Canines and Premolars, OH MY) I have decided to delay that post because of some interesting new research that just came across my desk. In the latest issue of the American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics (AJO-DO, for short) the cover story reads “Do dental esthetics have any influence on finding a job?”

We have known for a very long time that there is a close relationship between physical and social attractiveness. The face, and smile in particular, play a pivotal role in this relationship. People that are deemed “attractive” are seen as being more intelligent, capable, and responsible. Those same people have been shown to be happier and more successful than those who have been rated as “less attractive.” Now, does any of this cross over to our professional careers? Unfortunately, it does.

This study took 10 people (shown in the photo) with a variety of orthodontic treatment needs. Each person’s teeth were digitally corrected (so the patient had two photos: one with bad teeth and another with perfect teeth). These photos were shown to 100 people that are responsible for hiring for commercial companies. Each person was rated on their likelihood of being hired, honesty, intelligence, and work efficiency.

The results of the study are as follows: the photos of the perfect smiles were rated as having a greater likelihood of being hired and as more intelligent than the non-ideal photos. However, the smiles had no effect on the honesty and work efficiency rating, thankfully.

There is further scientific proof that a great smile opens doors that may be closed otherwise!

Thanks for reading,

Dr. Groth