Replication Data for: Halo Effect and Face Mask

To curb the diffusion of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) governments worldwide have introduced different policies, including lockdowns, social distancing, and mandatory mask-wearing. Face-mask wearing especially has an impact on the formation of first impressions, given that when meeting someone for the first time, individuals rely on the only available piece of information, the newly met person's Aesthetic Appearance, in order to make initial estimations of other traits, such as Competence, Intelligence, or Trustworthiness. However, face mask-wearing affects the Aesthetic Appearance of an individual, creating uncertainty, which in turn has been reported to reduce others' perceived trustworthiness. In this paper, the influence of face-mask wearing on strangers' Perceived Trustworthiness and Aesthetic Appearance is assessed, to verify the impact of this policy on impression formation. Participants (N = 71) have been instructed to assess the Trustworthiness and the Aesthetic Appearance of a selection of 96 images, depicting individuals of different age (children, adults, and older adults), gender (men and women), and ethnicity (Asians or Caucasians). Participants were randomly divided in two groups: an experimental group and a control group. Participants in the experimental group (N = 38) rated faces of individuals wearing a face mask, while participants in the control group rated the same faces but in the absence of a face mask. Images were presented in random order. For each face, participants were asked to rate the Aesthetic Appearance and Perceived Trustworthiness of the stranger, on two different 100 points Likert scales. Results demonstrate that (i) the correlation between Perceived Trustworthiness and Aesthetic Appearance is not affected by the presence of a face mask, and (ii) Age but not Ethnicity and Gender influence the magnitude of differences in Perceived Trustworthiness levels during mask-wearing.