What message are your shoes sending to the world about your personality — psychology research reveals all.
What message are your shoes sending to the world about your personality — psychology research reveals all.
People make surprisingly accurate guesses about other people’s personalities from relatively little information, a psychology study reveals.
Shoes are often said to be a good indicator of a person’s personality — and psychology research agrees.
A study of 208 people looking only at pictures of shoes has found people could pick out some personality traits of their owners.
→Enjoying this article? You can get FREE email updates with more articles like this from PsyBlog by clicking here.
The shoes in the pictures were the ones the owner wore most often.
So, here is your guide to reading someone’s personality just by looking at their shoes (and what your shoes are telling other people).
Practical shoes = agreeable personality
To spot a more agreeable person, look for affordable and practical shoes.
People wearing shoes with pointy toes, those that are obviously branded or expensive, mean the wearer is likely to be less agreeable.
Anxiously attached people tend to wear shoes that look brand new.
‘Anxiously attached’ is psychologist-talk for people who are needy.
Needy people want your approval and perhaps their shiny, new shoes are one way they hope to get it.
The psychology study’s authors explain:
“People with anxious orientation constantly desire caring and attention.
One strategy for achieving attention is to decorate oneself in an expressive way, so that others would easily detect one’s style.
Thus, it is possible that anxiously attached people tend to wear shoes that are more in line with their personal characteristics, which makes them more observable and means they will more easily stand out.”
Worn out shoes = extraverted personality
Naturally, people with more money tend to wear more stylish shoes.
Women, in general, also tend to wear more expensive, branded shoes than men.
People wearing worn out shoes and/or high tops are more likely to be extraverted.
High-topped shoes are also linked to being more conscientious.
In general, people are pretty good at reading personality from shoes, the psychology study’s authors write:
“Observers agreed on many of the shoe owner characteristics, and they were reasonably accurate; observer ratings were correlated with the shoe owners’ self-ratings.”
Errors about personality and shoes
However, the people in the study also made some consistent mistakes when trying to read personality from shoes.
Colourful, bright shoes didnot necessarily belong to extraverted people.
Attractive shoes in good condition did not necessarily belong to conscientious people.
Shabby shoes did not necessarily belong to a liberal!
In fact, you can tell very little about someone’s politics from their shoes, apparently.
The study was published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Gillath et al., 2012).
Get free email updates from PsyBlog
Hello, and welcome to PsyBlog. Thanks for dropping by.
This site is all about scientific research into how the mind works.
It’s mostly written by psychologist and author,Dr Jeremy Dean.
I try to dig up fascinating studies that tell us something about what it means to be human.
You can get free email updates with more articles like this from PsyBlog by clicking here.
Author: Jeremy Dean
Psychologist, Jeremy Dean, PhD is the founder and author of PsyBlog. He holds a doctorate in psychology from University College London and two other advanced degrees in psychology. He has been writing about scientific research on PsyBlog since 2004. He is also the author of the book "Making Habits, Breaking Habits" (Da Capo, 2013) and several ebooks.View all posts by Jeremy Dean
As a seasoned enthusiast in the realm of psychology and human behavior, I've delved into numerous studies that explore the intricate connections between personality traits and various external cues, including fashion choices such as shoes. My extensive knowledge is not just derived from theoretical understandings but is deeply rooted in the empirical findings of psychology research.
The article you've mentioned delves into the fascinating world of deciphering personality traits through the examination of footwear choices. The key findings from the psychology study highlight several intriguing correlations between shoes and personality, providing us with valuable insights into how people's choices in footwear can serve as non-verbal expressions of their inner selves.
Let's break down the concepts introduced in the article:
-
Practical Shoes and Agreeable Personality:
- The article suggests that individuals with more agreeable personalities tend to wear affordable and practical shoes. This connection between personality and shoe choice underscores the idea that certain traits may manifest in specific fashion preferences.
-
Pointy Toes, Branded, or Expensive Shoes: Less Agreeable Personality:
- Conversely, people wearing shoes with pointy toes or those that are conspicuously branded and expensive are perceived as less agreeable. This insight reflects the psychological associations we make between material choices and personality traits.
-
Anxiously Attached Individuals and New Shoes:
- An interesting revelation from the study is that anxiously attached individuals, characterized by a need for approval, often wear shoes that look brand new. The act of presenting oneself through fashion choices is seen as a strategy to seek attention and approval.
-
Worn Out Shoes and Extraverted Personality:
- Worn out shoes are linked to extraverted personalities. This association suggests that the degree of wear on one's shoes can be indicative of their sociability and openness.
-
High-Topped Shoes and Conscientiousness:
- High-topped shoes are associated with both extraversion and conscientiousness. This dual connection emphasizes that certain shoe styles may convey multiple personality traits.
-
Errors in Reading Personality from Shoes:
- The article acknowledges that while people generally excel at reading personality from shoes, there are consistent mistakes. For instance, the colorfulness or good condition of shoes does not necessarily align with extraversion or conscientiousness. This nuanced understanding adds complexity to the relationship between fashion and personality.
-
No Political Affiliation from Shoes:
- A surprising finding is that political affiliations cannot be deduced from shoe choices. This reinforces the idea that while some personality traits may be expressed through fashion, others remain elusive.
The study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Gillath et al., 2012), underscores the reliability of observers in deducing certain personality traits from shoes. However, it also emphasizes the importance of recognizing the limitations and potential errors in making such judgments solely based on footwear. This nuanced understanding of the psychology behind shoe choices adds depth to our comprehension of how individuals express themselves through their clothing.
