Superficial charm (or insincere charm) is the social act of saying or doing things because they are well received by others, rather than what one actually believes or wants to do. It is sometimes referred to as "telling people what they want to hear". Generally, superficial charm is an effective way to ingratiate or

persuade Persuasion or persuasion arts is an umbrella term for influence. Persuasion can influence a person's beliefs, attitudes, intentions, motivations, or behaviours. Persuasion is studied in many disciplines. Rhetoric studies modes of persuasio ...

and it is one of the many elements of

impression management Impression management is a conscious or subconscious process in which people attempt to influence the perceptions of other people about a person, object or event by regulating and controlling information in social interaction.Sanaria, A. D. (2016 ...

/self-presentation.Sanaria, A. D. (2016). A conceptual framework for understanding the impression management strategies used by women in indian organizations. South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, 3(1), 25-39. https://doi.org/10.1177/2322093716631118 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299373178_A_Conceptual_Framework_for_Understanding_the_Impression_Management_Strategies_Used_by_Women_in_Indian_Organizations

Flattery Flattery, also called adulation or blandishment, is the act of giving excessive compliments, generally for the purpose of Ingratiation, ingratiating oneself with the subject. It is also used in pick-up lines when attempting to initiate sexual or ...

and

charm Charm or Charms may refer to: Arts and entertainment * The Charms, an American garage rock band * Otis Williams and the Charms, an American doo-wop group * The Charm (Bubba Sparxxx album), ''The Charm'' (Bubba Sparxxx album), 2006 * Charm (Danny! ...

accompanied by obvious ulterior motives is generally not socially appreciated, and most people consider themselves to be skilled at distinguishing sincere compliments from

superficial Superficial may refer to: *Superficial anatomy, is the study of the external features of the body *Superficiality, the discourses in philosophy regarding social relation * Superficial charm, the tendency to be smooth, engaging, charming, slick and ...

ones; however, researchers have demonstrated that even obviously manipulative charm can be effective. While expressed attitudes are negative or dismissive, implicit attitudes are often positively affected. The effectiveness of charm and flattery, in general, stems from the recipient’s natural desire to feel good about one's self. Although superficial charm can be self damaging, the ability to be superficially charming often leads to success in areas like the theatre, salesmanship, or politics and diplomacy. In excess, being adept in

social intelligence Social intelligence (SI), sometimes referenced as social intelligence quotient or (SQ), is the ability to understand one's own and others' actions. Social intelligence is learned and develops from experience with people and learning from success an ...

and endlessly taking social cues from other people, can lead to the sacrificing of one's motivations and sense of self. Superficial charm can be exploitative. Individuals with antisocial personality disorder, for example, are known to have limited guilt or anxiety when it comes to exploiting others in harmful ways. While intimidation and violence are common means of exploitation, the use of superficial charm is not uncommon. Superficial charm is listed on the

Hare Psychopathy Checklist The Psychopathy Checklist or Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, now the Psychopathy Checklist—revised (PCL-R), is a psychological assessment tool that is commonly used to assess the presence and extent of psychopathy in individuals—most of ...

References

Conformity Human behavior Persuasion techniques Psychological models {{psychology-stub

See also

References