Not Bowing Down Thine Ear: Underestimating Observers' Impression After Seeking Help From People With Less Competence

ABSTRACT Help‐seekers not only desire to solve their problem, but also want to leave a good impression on others while seeking help. Although potential helpers who are overall less competent than help‐seekers can solve help‐seekers' specific problems in many situations, help‐seekers rarely ask for their help. To explain the underutilization of less‐competent helpers, this study investigates whether help‐seekers can accurately predict observers' impressions of them when they ask for help from these helpers. Five studies showed that people who sought help from less‐competent helpers underestimated observers' impressions, because they focused less on flexibility and more on competence compared to observers. This misprediction can be attenuated by prompting help‐seekers to consider the flexibility conveyed by downward help‐seeking. Our research contributes to the help‐seeking literature by examining whether and why help‐seekers miscalibrate social evaluations resulting from seeking help from less‐competent helpers. It also encourages help‐seekers to “bow down their ears.”