Black women with natural hairstyles are more likely to be rated as less competent, less professional in job interviews: research

Black women who wear their hair naturally are less likely to secure job interviews than either Black women with straightened hair or white women, according to research from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

The study, set to be published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, asked participants of multiple races to screen potential job applicants and assess their competence and professionalism based on Facebook profiles.

The researchers found that participants scored Black women with natural hair lower on professionalism and competence and were less likely to recommend them for interviews. They found similar results when different researchers were shown the same Black woman with different hairstyles, according to CNN.

Three of the studies involved participants from the general population, while another compared attitudes in management consulting and advertising, and involved MBA students.

Some industries were more likely to discriminate against women with natural hair than others. They were frequently discriminated against for management consulting jobs, but far less so for advertising positions.

“This may be because advertising is viewed as a more creative industry than consulting with less rigid dress norms,” researchers said.

Ashleigh Shelby Rosette, a management professor and a senior associate dean, said the research indicated that attempts to undo institutionalized racism should go beyond the obvious.

“In the aftermath of the George Floyd murder and the corresponding protests, many organizations have rightly focused on tactics to help eradicate racism at systemic and structural levels,” Rosette said. “But our individually-held biases often precede the type of racist practices that become embedded and normalized within organizations.

“What we suggest is that hair and the hair choices of Black women can be very consequential,” she added. “Hair is not just hair.”

Several states have outright banned discrimination on the basis of natural hair, including New York, New Jersey, California and Virginia.