金融时报:体格强壮是领导优势吗？

体格强壮是领导优势吗？

虚荣心或许不是雄心勃勃的年轻男性在意自己体格的唯一原因。他们或许是朝着领导地位迈出了精心策划的一步。最近的一项研究表明，人们会将男性身体的强壮等同于更高的地位和种种领导品质。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

obsess迷住，缠住[əb'ses]

physique体格，体形[fɪ'ziːk]

chest胸部；衣柜[tʃest]

esteem尊重；尊敬[ɪ'stiːm; e-]

Tops and Tails儿童游戏“头和尾”

manipulate操作；篡改[mə'nɪpjʊleɪt]

indigenous本土的；土著的；国产的[ɪn'dɪdʒɪnəs]

regime政权，政体[reɪ'ʒiːm]

merger并购；吸收['mɜːdʒə]

collapsed倒塌的；暴跌的[kə'læpst]

The leadership advantage that a ripped upper body brings （584words）

By Andrew Hill

Vanity might not be the only reason ambitious young males obsess about their physique. They may be taking a calculated step towards leadership.

A new study suggests that people equate physical strength in men with higher status and leadership qualities. Researchers showed participants photographs of young men and women dressed in undershirts to show off their shoulder, chest and arm muscles.

They were told that the people were recruits at a consulting firm. They were asked to rate how much they admired them, held them in esteem and believed they would rise in status. “Do you think this person is a good leader?” was one of the questions.

In an academic version of the children's game Tops and Tails, the researchers Photoshopped the images, switching the bodies and heads and manipulating heights, to take account of the possibility that results could be skewed by how tall or attractive the subjects were.

Participants consistently rated stronger men more highly for status and leadership qualities. When shown pictures of women, it made little difference whether the subjects were stronger or weaker.

The research, soon to be published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, seems to endorse Vladimir Putin's habit of flaunting his physique, or Donald Trump's publication of his doctor's opinion of his “extraordinary” physical strength. It also adds to a rich vein of work on the physical characteristics of business executives.

A 2004 paper, for instance, looked at research on height and found that tall individuals have an advantage in their careers, with six-footers earning almost $166,000 more over 30 years than someone standing only 5 feet 5 inches. Warwick Business School research last year indicated that men who rise highest in business, the military and sport share common facial features.

Other researchers have noted a link between upper-body strength and status in indigenous Bolivian people, but, happily, we do not get to see many chief executives undressed, so it is hard to assess whether the same applies in the boardroom.

Those executives who admit to a serious workout regime, or who projected a public image of physical strength, have a mixed record.

Carsten Kengeter, a broad-shouldered extreme skier who “likes nothing better than a weekend of marathon running in the Mont Blanc massif”, looks set to take his leadership of Deutsche Börse through the pain barrier with a merger with the London Stock Exchange.

Gavin Patterson's leonine appearance — regularly referenced by reporters — has not hindered his rise to the top of BT, the UK telecoms group.

On the other hand, in 2012, Maurice “Hank” Greenberg — then 87 — boasted to the FT of his weightlifting prowess. It is doubtful if this would have saved AIG, the insurer he used to run, from bailout.

Thor Björgolfsson wears “sculpted suits” and works out regularly, according to a recent profile “because it teaches self-discipline and pushes one to the limit”. Fellow investors in Landsbanki, the collapsed Icelandic bank where he was the major shareholder, might have hoped for more self-discipline sooner in his career.

The paper is called “The role of physical formidability in human social status allocation” — a title that risks having sand kicked in its face by more muscular headlines.

Aaron Lukaszewski of Oklahoma State University, who carried out the study with co-authors from University of California Berkeley, UC Santa Barbara and University of Portland, has a word of caution for any leader tempted to throw his weight around. “Self-interested aggressiveness decreased men's projected status,” he says.

Mr Putin and Mr Trump, take note.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who published his “extraordinary” physical strength?

A.Donald Trump

B.Vladimir Putin

C.Aaron Lukaszewski

D.Obama

答案(1)

2.What feature can be an advantage in people's careers in a 2004 paper?

A.short

B.strong

C.tall

D.thin

答案(2)

3.Who were found a link between upper-body strength and status?

A.Bolivians

B.Britishmen

C.Americans

D.Chinese people

答案(3)

4.Why the author gives examples at the end of article?

A.to prove physical strength is helpful for career

B.to prove physical strength has a mixed record

C.to suggest people exercise both mind and body

D.to criticize Mr Putin and Mr Trump

答案(4)

* * *

(1)答案：A.Donald Trump

解释：唐纳德·特朗普公布了医生对其身体素质“特别出色”的评价的做法，增加了有关企业高管外形特征的论述。

(2)答案：C.tall

解释：一份2004年的论文研究了身高，发现高个子在事业上拥有优势，在30年的时间里，身高6英尺的人会比身高仅5英尺5英寸的人多挣近16.6万美元。

(3)答案：A.Bolivians

解释：还有研究人员注意到玻利维亚本地人上半身体形的强壮与其地位存在关联，但幸运的是，我们不会看到有多少首席执行官袒露上身，因此很难评估这是否也适用于企业的董事会。

(4)答案：B.to prove physical strength has a mixed record

解释：文章说那些坦言自己严格执行锻炼计划，或者营造身体强壮的公众形象的高管们的命运好坏参半，之后举例证明。