Can you really come to a conclusion based on inputs of just 25 MTurkers?
25 is less than 30 (the minimum required numbers to assume normal distribution) and also all being MTurkers is also not a good sign of unbiasedness.
People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
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Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#22Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think you got it backward, read it again. He used the Mechanical Turk to put a number on each face rather than just yes/no. He then compared the results with actual loan applications, and found that it correlated pretty well.
Oh, I see now. Makes sense. Thanks.
There's some clarification on how the Turk was used at http://www.econsteve.com/?p=166 .
Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#23Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#24Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#25Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#26Other factors to control for include piercings, haircut, facial hair, glasses, makeup, any clothes in the picture (shirt/hat), hygiene, and tattoos. However, it really wouldn't surprise me if some aspects of personality can, on average, be discerned from facial appearances. In hunter-gatherer days, being able to make an accurate snap judgment of a stranger's trustworthiness would be a big evolutionary advantage. And…
> if some aspects of personality can, on average, be discerned from facial appearances
Testosterone and estrogen levels are quite apparent in facial structure. People with male jaw lines and brows are more assertive.
Re: People’s creditworthiness, it seems, can be seen in their looks
#27Sorry, can't pay attention to The Economist for science/tech writing. They have far too many misses vs. hits.