Publication
Title
Facebook profile picture appearance affects recruiters' first hiring decisions
Author
Abstract
We investigate whether the publicly available information on Facebook about job applicants affects employers hiring decisions. To this end, we conduct a field experiment in which fictitious job applications are sent to real job openings in Belgium. The only characteristic in which these candidates differ is the unique Facebook profile that can be found online with their name. Candidates with the most beneficial Facebook picture obtain approximately 38% more job interview invitations compared to candidates with the least beneficial picture. In addition, we find suggestive evidence for a higher effect of Facebook profile picture appearance on hiring chances when candidates are highly educated and when recruiters are female.
Language
English
Source (journal)
New media and society. - London
Publication
London : 2018
ISSN
1461-4448
DOI
10.1177/1461444816687294
Volume/pages
20 :3 (2018) , p. 1220-1239
ISI
000429899100021
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 07.02.2017
Last edited 04.03.2024
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