Understanding the Role of Erotic Capital in Recruitment: Imaginaries and Candidates Experiences

Research on the role of individual elements of a candidate’s erotic capital has been conducted for years. However, there is a lack of holistic studies in which erotic capital is treated as a multidimensional construct influencing recruiters’ decisions. To fill this research gap, we conducted two studies. A total of 632 individuals (75.5% of whom were women) participated in the studies, all with experience as job applicants. The studies identified imaginaries of the role of a candidate’s erotic capital in recruitment decisions, as well as the experiences of subjects in this area. We defined erotic capital as a five-dimensional construct which includes beauty, social attractiveness, sexual attractiveness, liveliness, and presentation. The current findings indicate a hypothetical underestimation of the role of a candidate’s erotic capital, which in reality (particularly beauty and sexual attractiveness) has a greater influence on recruiters’ decisions than people tend to assume. The findings suggest that a candidate’s erotic capital, by affecting the emotions of the recruiter, may influence recruiters’ evaluations, which are reflected in recommending the candidate for further selection stages or offering employment.