Cuteness of children plays a key role in disaster relief help, a new study shows. Researchers explain that less attractive children receive more help during natural disasters.
The team reasons that people perceive attractive children as more popular, intelligent and getting more attention than the unattractive ones and hence, find the less fortunate ones as more deserving of help.
For the study, the researchers conducted four experiments. Participants were told to visit fictional websites that sponsored a child from a developing country. Researchers said that the children's levels of attractiveness and needs featured on the websites were systematically varied in the experiments.
The research findings showed that facial attractiveness did not have any effect on aid response when children were showed in severe need (losing both parents in a natural disaster). The analysis showed that attractive children received less help and sympathy when the children's needs were not severe.
"Many charitable organizations use children in advertising and promotional materials. Our research examines how the facial attractiveness of the children in these campaigns affects the empathy and help received from adults," study authors, Robert J. Fisher and Yu Ma of University of Alberta, wrote in the study.
According to the researchers, the research analysis might prove beneficial for disaster relief agencies, hospitals, and other charitable organizations.
"We believe our research offers a positive and hopeful perspective on human behavior because it suggests that when a child is in obvious need, even strangers can feel compassion and offer aid irrespective of the child's physical appearance," researchers concluded.
The findings were published in the 'Journal of Consumer Research'.
