Upper School Intersession 2025

Can you pick the next president via looks alone? This course will explore whether voters can accurately predict politician competence and performance in office based on facial appearance alone. Research indicates that quick judgments about candidate appearance often predict election outcomes. Voters' response to facial appeal fits into broader concerns that citizens do not base their decisions on things that matter —policy and talent—but what appeals to their basic instincts.

You will investigate this facial phenomenon by examining recent studies and engaging in an in-class facial appearance study. We will ultimately review our own study and examine what it means for the future of democracy and what it tells us about our own concepts of fairness, prejudice, and leadership.

Some basic knowledge of the U.S. electoral process is helpful but not required.