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Dressing for success can boost your salary: study

People who wear expensive or branded clothing to a job interview are more likely to score a job than those wearing cheaper clothing, new research suggests.

The Journal of Business Research study, conducted at a Korean university, found well-dressed people to be viewed be positively than their counterparts.

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Researchers showed 180 students in Seoul three photographs of a woman being interviewed for a film agency internship.

The videos were identical, except in one the woman wore an unbranded shirt, in another she wore an H&M shirt and in the final clip she wore a shirt with a Louis Vuitton logo.

The majority of the students selected the woman wearing the designed-branded shirt as the one most likely to succeed in getting the job.

Respondents also expected the expensively-dressed woman to earn more than the other two and have a higher worth and status.

“Conspicuous displays of luxury qualify as a costly signaling trait that elicits status-dependent favorable treatment in human social interactions,” the study states.

However, the researchers behind the study warn this theory could backfire – with gaudy or logo-covered clothing possibly being viewed as tacky or attention-seeking.

Alternatively, a subtle yet expensive get-up may be ignored by potential bosses, meaning your money has gone to waste.

 

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