First impressions happen very quickly … from less than a second to 30 seconds.
“First impression bias: a limitation in human information processing that causes us to make quick and incomplete observations about others based on the first piece of information we perceive.
UX case: Participants viewed website homepages for 50 milliseconds each, then rated the visual appeal of each page. Lindgaard and colleagues found that participants reliably decided which homepages they liked and which they did not like within 50 milliseconds.
Medical case: Kostopoula and colleagues found that there was indeed a strong association between the initial diagnoses by the physician and subsequent diagnoses. Therefore, the physicians were likely basing their final diagnoses largely on the first pieces of information they learned about the patients and may have sought out information to support those original hunches
Finance case: Hirschleifer and colleagues found that if a firm performs well in the year before an analyst follows that firm, the analyst is optimistic in subsequent forecasts and vice versa. Further, this finding can carry over to price targets and recommendations.” – https://thedecisionlab.com/reference-guide/psychology/the-first-impression-bias
Here is a visual example: What do you see?
Do you see a 4-legged animal?
Consider the following:
- When doing observations and research make sure that you have more than one person to balance what each person observes.
- How does our design of systems and processes help or hinder the person’s first impression?
- What can you do to consider this as part of your work?
- Implications when you are hiring: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z_r6RNzea0