Informal Pics Capture Real You: Study

'Spontaneous' photos reveal personality better than posed shots

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted Nov 9, 2009 2:14 PM CST

(Newser) – The way you pose for photos telegraphs your personality and can even change the way other people interpret it. Photo subjects were rated on 10 personality traits through self-description and interviews with friends, and researchers then let study participants loose. Though self-esteem and extraversion come across easily, traits like likeability and willingness to try new things are more evident in “expressive” poses, LiveScience reports.

The study also reveals ways to project certain personality traits. Extroverts smile and look neat and healthy. “If you want potential employers or romantic suitors to see you as a warm and friendly individual, you should post pictures where you smile or are standing in a relaxed pose," a study author’s says. If you want to play up “openness,” dress funkily and avoid that “healthy, neat appearance.”

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A Halloween photo posted on Facebook. (AP Photo)

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In an age dominated by social media where personal photographs are ubiquitous, it becomes important to understand the ways personality is communicated via our appearance.
- Laura Naumann, Sonoma State University

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Informal Pics Capture Real You: Study