Can a Man Be Too Handsome?

“Yes,” if he wants to get ahead at his job according to this study:

It’s hard out here for a hot guy.

The struggle is apparently quite real for men who suffer from a certain predestined affliction: being very handsome.

According to a new study carried out in the US and UK, handsome men are more likely to be seen as a threat by their bosses and are hence less likely to score equally powerful positions. The study involved researchers at University College London’s School of Management and the University of Maryland in the US carrying out four separate experiments in four different offices, according to the Daily Mail. They found that when men were hiring other men to work with them, their decision was negatively affected by the attractiveness of the candidate and the type of job. Women’s perceived hotness, shockingly, did not prevent them from being desirable additions to the boardroom.

“Managers are affected by stereotypes and make hiring decisions to serve their own self-interests so organizations may not get the most competent candidates” said professor Sun Young Lee, lead researcher at the University of Maryland. “With more companies involving employees in recruitment processes, this important point needs attention. Awareness that hiring is affected by potential work relationships and stereotyping tendencies can help organizations improve their selection processes.”

Funny that women’s hotness gets them ahead and men’s seems to leave them behind. But isn’t that the way it is with so many gender stereotypes? Men are often the ones being discriminated against while women are always told it’s only them.