Why do humans judge people by their appearance? Please don't answer, "it's the human nature."

Well, it is human nature. It is an evolutionary trait. We judge everything by its appearance.

By saying "don't say human nature", you are eliminating the only correct answer.

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Maybe you are after something along these lines:
People judge others by their appearance because they are either unwise or they don't know better.

We've all heard the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover!" Unfortunately, we do, it's not nice but we do it anyways. The most common reason we tend to judge a person right away by their appearance are for security reasons.

Although most people won't admit it, we're all a little insecure and sometimes don't feel like we're up to par with the standards set by the hoi polloi. This leads us to look down at people who's clothes are not in fashion, or if their hair is all funky, etc. Not because we like to be mean (although some do), but because it helps them to feel better about themselves, knowing that they don't look like that and are more acceptable to what other people think.

When we see someone who looks like a perfect 10, we tend to get fascinated with their appearance but at the same time look down on their own. Which is a shame, because this alters their personality and behavior in order to "fit in."

It's not only the social level that judges people by their looks, but it also goes on at the professional level as well. In the corporate world, it's almost impossible to get or keep a job if you don't wear a suit and tie. Your hair must be clean cut and you must be clean and proper. Otherwise, you'll be looked upon as someone who has no respect for themselves, therefor wouldn't have any respect for the company or the people he/she works with. They'll be looked at as incompetent.

It's sad to say, but overweight people are less likely to get hired for a job than skinny to average weight people. It's a tough and pressured world.

Some people do this. It is because they are shallow and superficial, and are more concerned with a person's "outers" than their "inners."

Lacking any other information about an unknown person, appearance allows the human mind to sort and categorize based on previous experience. This allows the person to determine whether the stranger most likely poses a potential threat or a potential benefit. It gives the person a starting place from which to begin any encounter if any with the unknown. These initial impressions, despite what many will claim, can be easily changed of the first interactions go well.

okay.... if I can't say human nature, than I'll say the media .. they have great influence over people through TV, magazines, etc.

Because I cannot see if a girl has good values or a nice set of morals from 75 ft. away.

Biology. It isn't just humans who judge by appearance. We are programmed to assess the fertility and overall health of our fellow humans based on appearance. That's why big lips, large breasts, shiny hair, etc. are so attractive to us. This will supposedly allow us to choose the best mate to ensure that the offspring is as strong as possible.

Unfortunately, that doesn't leave much room for the complexities of modern society. I agree that it's extremely superficial. Maybe some day we will evolve beyond this and many of the criteria for which we currently choose mates will become obsolete because modern inventions and technologies allow the weak to survive and reproduce as well as the strong.

So my answer isn't "human nature"...it's just "nature."

There are laws of attraction when it comes to people. First is locality. You gotta be in the same place in order to be attracted. Second is appearance. If you find a person physically repugnant, you will prolly resist meeting them.(Thats a judgement) From there theres a chemical thing, and an interpersonal dynamic that must fill a need. Humans are visually stimulated and recognize a well proportioned "pleasing" face early in childhood. Its the judging thats the rub. It is improper to make any evaluation of worth based on appearance, yet we do it. It's a way of weeding through the huge numbers of people we come in contact with every day. Its an injustice placed on another as a result of ingrained sterotypes. It's done out of ignorace and its done out if self defence. Appearance also provides insight into another person. How you keep your hair, what clothes you wear- they all shed light on who we are as individuals. We change our appearance to change societies perception- societies judgment of us.

Is the real question "Why do humans sometime act violently or incompassionatly toward another based on their judgement of that person?"

Humans are visual creatures- it is the first bit of information that you get about someone usually. Not only that, but physical appearance usually gives us clues about the person's health and lifestyle, although they are not always correct.

On a more shallow note, most people are very worried about what other people think of them. In the same sense that they want to be driving a car that other people will be jealous of, they want to surround themselves with beautiful people.

People judge by appearance because it's the easiest thing to judge by, and we go through life learning to judge quickly for survival's sake. Since we rely more on sight than any other sense, we tend to judge by this sense the most strongly.

Because our eyes are the first sense that begins to collect information while we make our judgements. It is impossible not to make judgements (oops, I guess that was my human nature statement). The shallow and misguided part comes in when we make our final judgements too early, without collecting all of the important infomation. Someone who is well dressed and good looking may be the biggest crook out there, but you may initially see him/her and think (or hope) that he/she is someone you would like to trust or get to know. Conversely, we may be initially repulsed by the sight of a homeless person, but he/she may be the nicest, most honest person on earth. Judging wisely is the key.

well i gotta say that most of us (and by us i mean in general) do it to make our selves feel better.

i mean its a sense of self esteem!!!

also people like to be funny and they think that making fun of others will make someone else laugh.

Because a person's appearance tells a lot of what they think of themselves...and of other people.

People judge by appearance because when you first meet someone, that's the only thing you can judge by. Often this creates conflicts with further judgments on the person's character and other more personal things.

It's NOT HUMAN NATURE!! It's insecure, jealous people who are scared of the people they don't know!!

alot of people like to see what wrong with the other persone that they are setting with so they always like to judge them from there clothes or the way that they are talking or walking and they don't see them self before judgeing people wich is the wrong thing to do.

Via a basic self-preservation instinct.

because we judge the entire world by our senses and the first interaction we have with anyone is through sight and smell, there's no way NOT to judge people by their appearance. True, sometimes appearances are deceiving and we should always make an effort to investigate further and get to know the real person, but it's in our nature, no way around it to judge people on some level or another by their appearance. If we did not do so then everyone in the world would look, act, and dress the same..we are creatures that strive to separate and define ourselves by how we look, we want to stand out, we want our appearance to send a message of "this is who I am in a nutshell" on some level..we WANT to be judged on some level on how we look, as individuals...if we didn't we would all just be one color, with one hairstyle and have no makeup, clothing, or any of the other decor we adorn ourselves with.
There's absolutely no way, in my opinion, to judge people by who they are on the inside without first making some kind of essessment as to who they are on the outside first. The only way to do that is to become psychic or be able to read minds.

It is the way our brains are programmed. We take in visual information and, without even thinking about it, our brains codify the information.

Misery loves company

Its just natural, automatically we look at people and if they appear well dressed, smiley and attractive we have a great first impression of them as this is the type of person we want to be around. However if someone looks dirty, grumpy and badly dressed we will automatically avoid this type of person.

Lacking any other information about an unknown person, appearance allows the human mind to sort and categorize based on previous experience. This allows the person to determine whether the stranger most likely poses a potential threat or a potential benefit. It gives the person a starting place from which to begin any encounter if any with the unknown. These initial impressions, despite what many will claim, can be easily changed of the first interactions go well.

It's the first thing you see and know about the person. You start deciding who they are the moment you look at them. Just part of reasoning. It's only if you don't allow those perceptions to be changed if they are incorrect that you have a problem.

Appearance counts, as does spelling.

because its first impression until u actually meet them but if you never meet them then you will always judge them on their appearance

it is because its the first thing they see with their eyes

They're shallow and misguided by what's on the outside. That's NOT human nature, I don't think that way.

I THINK ITS THE WAY WE WERE BROUGHT UP, PEOPLE MAKE ASSUMPTIONS AND SOMETIMES WAY OFF. ITS A SHAME, BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE ARE ALL THE SAME, WE ALL COME AND LEAVE THE SAME WAY.....SAD

It's because of the pride that is within us all. We like to be vain and thought highly by other people because it gives the illusion of we being above them. This does statisfy our human nature which is inherintly sinful. However, when we learn the lessen about how one's judgement of apperance, it would be too late, and we will regret, just ask people who are old and then the answer will no be clearer. But this illusion will destory all because our appearancewill not stay. What stays is our heart and our soul, and that is the real thing that we should judge people upon.

It makes it easier to categorise them as friend or foe.

it's sad really but people think just by how the person looks "oh i never wanna talk to them!" people do that because some think they are always right

All animals do it, although in nature the males are the better looking ones. Think peacocks, lions with their manes, red cardinals etc. The colors are to attract the females. Just seems to be the opposite with humans.

I don't think its out of shallowness or superficiality but more because the "appearance judger" wants to get some initial sense about the other person to 1) relate to them 2) for their own security (determine if the other person is a threat or trustworthy) and how to according adjust their own personal boundaries and 3) determine if they would get along with them or possible reject them (let them in to your emotional space or keep them out of it). Sincerely don't think it's due to anything superficial but may have been twisted into this by some individuals.