First impression effects in organizational psychology.

The study of first impressions, which consistently demonstrate meaningful and surprisingly durable impacts on attitudes, behaviors, and cognitions, is pervasive across psychological disciplines. In this integrative conceptual review, we focus on first impressions within the organizational psychology literature, which have been explored across an impressive variety of topical domains (e.g., selection, socialization, leader-subordinate relationships, job performance, and teams) though largely in fragmented ways. Our review attempts to resolve major differences in how researchers have approached first impression effects to build consensus on what first impression effects are, how they occur, and how long they take to develop. In synthesizing this seemingly disparate body of research, we develop an integrative framework of first impression effects comprising four fundamental elements-cues, motives, processes, and outcomes-that must be considered both individually and collectively to understand first impression effects in organizational settings in their entirety. Using this framework, we take stock of the existing literature and identify important through lines, including the focus on displayer- or perceiver-centric effects and whether first impression effects are presumed to be biased or valid. Our fundamental elements framework can be used to systematically catalog and reconcile prior work, as well as develop stronger, more theoretically cohesive studies in the future. We outline major implications for theory and practice on first impressions in the workplace. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).