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Somaya Muna
Professor Lee
Individual Short Paper
23 September 2015

Scrooges Lasting First Impression

Fred always makes a poor first impression- he says it saves a lot of time
(Lamagna, Rota 1). Within three seconds one can make a first impression; once the
judgment is formed, it lingers. If perhaps you made a negative impression, you may
have to spend the rest of your time and effort to undo the assessment. Fred probably
did not want to be bothered, so he may have intentionally made a poor impression. But
what if this was your first impression with a potential boss, client, or co-worker? From
the professional world of business to everyday interactions with your professors,
classmates, or even the cashier who rings up that six-pack, first impressions are formed
subconsciously. According to Bauer and Erdogan, first impressions can be defined as
the initial thoughts and perceptions we form about people, which tend to be stable and
resilient to contrary information (83). First impressions can be based upon the four
biases and tendencies of perception: visual perception, self-perception, social
perception, and selective perception.
Visual perception is the process of inferring information from what our eyes can
see. Lets say Fred is a modern-day Scrooge, and he always passes by the merry

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children and says Bah, humbug! (Dickens). Now bystanders may form a visual
perception of Fred as someone unpleasant who loathes merry children. But what people
may not know is that Fred actually stops by the orphanage and drops off toys for the
less merry children. Therefore, our first impression of Fred through visual perception
lead to inaccurate inferences about the people around us (Bauer, Erdogan 81).
Self-perception involves two types of bias: self-enhancement bias and selfeffacement bias, which both reflect ones personality. Self-enhancement bias can reflect
those who may boast their performance or good-deeds or may demonstrate hubris. The
self-effacement bias or modesty bias refers to one who may underestimate his
capabilities or sees himself in a more negative light. For example, Fred decides to apply
for a job for the Childrens Daycare, but fails mention his past experience with children.
These tendencies can create a first impression on ones boss, who may choose the
person who has more confidence or the person who is more humble depending on the
job requirements.
Bauer and Erdogan describe social perception as how we perceive other people
in our environment which is shaped by our values, emotions, feelings, and personality
(82). Our perception of others effects our behavior which can influence our interactions
with people. Take for instance, our present-day Scrooge, Fred, who absolutely despises
Christmas. The town therefore decides all men who do not like Christmas are grumpy
and do not partake in any merriment. The town created a stereotype, which is a
generalization based on group characteristics. So why should Fred, who dresses in all
black and is grumpy, be hired in the Daycare? Freds outstanding resume and

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background experience with kids may be overlooked by the managers first impression
of Freds all black gothic attire.
Lastly, our background, expectations, and beliefs will shape which events we
notice and which events we ignore, (Bauer, Erdogan 82) causing selective perception.
For example, Fred decides he wants to volunteer for Costume Play at the orphanage.
Suppose the event is run by the Daycare manager and Fred is dressed up in a costume
this time. The Daycare manager notices the animated and interactive costumed man,
but he overlooked Fred during the interview because of his all black attire. The relaxed
kid-friendly environment allowed Fred to become extroverted. During the tense, formal
interview, the managers first impression of Fred as an introvert was falsely assessed.
With these four biases and tendencies of perception, our first impressions are
created within seconds. These impressions are constructed by our visual observations,
how we perceive ourselves, how we create certain stereotypes or prejudice based on
appearance or behavior, and how we focus our attention on selective parts. My prime
example of Fred, a modern-day Scrooge, describes how even today our society is left
with the impression of Scrooge as a grumpy old man who loathes Christmas. Although
the end of the Dickens novel demonstrates Scrooge as a dynamic character who
enjoys Christmas, the first impression of Scrooge as the grouchy man who said Bah,
Humbug! will always remain. This allusion of Scrooge illustrates how first impressions
have a lasting effect and there are no second chances to make a first impression. We
may try and fix our past, but our society focuses collectively on the future. Therefore,
learning from your past first impressions during a major life event, like a job interview, or

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even during a minor life event like your first day of class, is how we move forward and
prepare ourselves to make a positive great first impression in our future interactions.

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References
Bauer, Talya, and Berrin Erdogan. Organizational Behavior. 2.0nd ed. Nyack, NY: Flat
World Knowledge, 2015. Print.

Lamagna, Christy, and James Rota. "Plan Your Meetings." For Better or Worse, First
Impressions Create Lasting Results. Plan Your Meetings, 11 July 2012. Web. 22 Sept.
2015. <http://planyourmeetings.com/2012/07/11/for-better-or-worse-first-impressionscreate-lasting-results/>.