Face Value: The Irresistible Influence of First Impressions

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By Alexander Todorov

Published May 31, 2017

Face Value (Princeton University Press) is an accessibly written overview of Princeton psychology professor Alexander Todorov’s extensive work on facial features and first impressions. The troubling, surprising, and astounding facts surrounding his work include evidence that we make judgments about a person in 1/10 of a second and we like “typical” faces and dislike others. The book includes experiments in the text so that readers can test their own impressions.

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The cover of PAW’s February 2025 issue, featuring a photo of Frank Stella leaning back with his hands behind his head.