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In this study 480 native Dutch passers-by (240 men and 240 women) were approached with a request to participate in an investigation. The request was made by either a female or male experimenter wearing either a smile or a neutral expression. Results showed that a smiling experimenter elicited a smile from participants more often than when a neutral expression was displayed. Furthermore, there was a distinct correlation between a participant's smiling and his/her willingness to help, and a smile from a male experimenter was more likely to elicit helpfulness than from a female experimenter. Participants who agreed to help also answered a few written questions. These results showed that participants who received a smile from an experimenter were in a more positive mood than those who were approached by an experimenter wearing a neutral expression. It was also found that women smiled more often than men.
Keywords: smiling, mood, helping behavior.
When somebody is alone in a public place full of strangers he or she feels basically anonymous. This anonymity is challenged when one receives a smile from a stranger (Solomon et al., 1981). Hinsz andTomhave (1991) suggested that the smile of a stranger in a public setting might be considered a form of greeting or acknowledgement that has rewarding properties. This could explain why a smile from an experimenter quickly and automatically evokes a smile in response (Hinsz & Tomhave, 1991; Vrugt, 2007).
There is evidence that the smile of a stranger also enhances helpfulness (Guéguen & de Gail, 2003; Solomon et al., 1981). Solomon et al. carried out research in a large department store. A female experimenter waiting for the elevator caught the eye of a shopper who was also waiting, and gave her a smile. In the control condition the experimenter did not make eye contact with or smile at the waiting shopper. In the elevator a female experimenter exclaimed to no one in particular: "Can anybody tell me what floor the umbrellas are on?" The shoppers at whom the experimenter had smiled were more likely to answer this question. The study of Guéguen and de Gail was conducted in a supermarket: an experimenter either smiled or did not smile at a shopper, while a second experimenter held a portfolio and...