The Effects of Ethnicity and Culturally Congruent and Incongruent Nonverbal Behaviors on Interpersonal Attraction1

The study investigated the effects of ethnicity and nonverbal style on interpersonal attraction in university students. Sixty‐four Palagi (white New Zealand) women participated in the research and were randomly assigned to interview either a Palagi or Samoan student in a study on friendship. Female confederates, who posed as interviewees, responded with a pre‐rehearsed script and exhibited either a Palagi or Samoan nonverbal style. After conclusion of the interview, subjects completed a questionnaire about the project, including their perceptions of the interviewee confederate. A2 × 2 analysis of variance revealed a main effect of nonverbal style on ratings of interpersonal attractiveness: subjects preferred confederates who displayed culturally congruent (Palagi) nonverbal behaviors. There were no significant effects, however, for ethnicity or for the ethnicity by style interaction.