Influencing Social Impressions Through Visually Induced Temperature in a Social Networking Site

Online social networking sites, such as LinkedIn, have become integral tools for career management purposes. Extant research has explored a range of explicit cues (e.g., textual descriptions related to education, work experience) individuals use in their impression management efforts. However, the literature has yet to pay attention to the effects of implicit cues in online settings. In the present research, we rely on the theory of grounded cognition to advance the field of consumer behavior by examining how the use of visual cues with metaphorical associations related to concrete experiences (i.e., temperature) may influence the perception of an individual’s personality traits related to these concrete experiences (warmth, competence, coolness). We find that a LinkedIn banner image associated with hot temperatures can enhance the perception of warmth-related traits, but only when used by a female, and that an image associated with cold temperatures can enhance competence perceptions, but only when used by a male. Our findings suggest that high levels of concreteness in the concepts that the images evoke are critical for these effects to occur. The present work demonstrates that visual cues related to grounded experiences can enhance social perceptions in digitally mediated career settings. The present work represents a steppingstone for intriguing future research in the information systems literature leveraging the theory of grounded cognition in career-related platforms to influence social perception.