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Tim Krohn

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February 21, 2009

Social stereotyping of blondes has to stop

By Tim Krohn

It’s not easy being blond.

They have to live with all those unfair jokes.

Q: Why do blondes like lightning?

A: They think someone is taking their picture.

Now, it turns out blondes actually change the aptitude of men who meet them. And not in a good way.

In what is being called “bimbo delusion,” French researchers found that men actually get dumber when they meet a blonde.

The academics studied men’s ability to complete general knowledge tests after exposure to different women. They found that men’s scores fell after they were shown pictures of blondes.

“This proves that people confronted with stereotypes generally behave in line with them,” said Thierry Meyer, joint author of the study and professor of social psychology at the University of Paris X-Nanterre.

Two blondes lock their keys in the car. One of the blondes tries to break into the car while the other one watches.

Finally the first blonde says, “Darn, I can’t get in the car!” The other blonde replies, “Keep trying, it looks like it is going to rain and the top is down.”

This research is not going to help the poor fair-haired women out there. Not only are they stereotyped, there’s now science showing their effect on others’ mental performance.

Of course, the fact we can have a “blond moment” by merely looking at a photo doesn’t say much for men, either.

She was so blond, she told me to meet her at the corner of “walk” and “don’t walk.”

The psychologists who study this phenomena argue there are deep, complex and significant behavioral implications. People subconsciously change their thinking simply by looking at someone, based on everything from race to age.

For the long-suffering blondes, their current predicament goes back a long way.

Researchers at St. Andrews University found that north European women evolved blond hair and blue eyes at the end of the Ice Age to make them stand out from their rivals at a time of fierce competition for scarce males.

Thus, a long imbedded disdain ensued toward blondes by their dark-haired counterparts.

Q: What do you call it when a blonde dies their hair brunette?

A: Artificial intelligence

While the female rivalry may have been brewing for thousands of years, the stereotyping of blondes blossomed in modern media, beginning with the 1925 Anita Loos novel “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” A string of stars who capitalized on the image — Marilyn Monroe, Suzanne Somers, Goldie Hawn, Paris Hilton — made the dumb blonde and blonde jokes an indelible part of modern society.

I think researchers need to take their studies a bit further, though. Do people subconsciously become less scrupulous when they meet a lawyer? Do they become more dull-witted when they see a politician? Do they become instantly jaded, sarcastic and unfair when they meet a newspaper columnist?

It would be interesting research. And it might take some of the pressure off the downtrodden blondes. Goodness knows they could use it.

So next time you see a blonde, be nice, act smart and for pity sake knock it off with the jokes.

Q: Why did the blonde go to the rehab center?

A: Because she thought she was hooked on phonics.



Tim Krohn is a Free Press staff writer. He can be contacted at 344-6383 or tkrohn@mankatofreepress.com.

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Tim Krohn