<p> Ladies, take note! Wearing lipstick may help you feel smarter and boost cognitive performance, say scientists who found that women who wear makeup are more likely to score higher academic grades.<br /><br />Researchers, including those from Harvard University in the US, studied how academic performance were affected by the so-called "lipstick effect" - a psychological phenomenon in which wearing cosmetics can make an individual feel a sense of overall enhancement in self-esteem, attitude, and personality.<br /><br />Cosmetics have a well-documented effect on wearers' psychology, in that the wearer feels more physically attractive and enjoys a consequent higher sense of self- esteem, researchers said.<br /><br />However, a less well-known effect of this boost in self- esteem is that cognitive abilities may also be influenced, in that they are improved by positive emotions.<br /><br />Researchers devised a psychological experiment in which female undergraduates were sorted into groups and given a series of tests.<br /><br />The test comprised of answering multiple choice questions about a chapter from a general psychology textbook. Before each of the three groups took the test, they all undertook a different mood-influencing task.<br /><br />One group applied makeup, another listened to "a positive music excerpt" and a third coloured a drawing of a human face.<br />The team found a significant increase in cognitive performance from the group who listened to positive music however, the makeup group performed the best.<br /><br />Test scores were significantly higher compared to those obtained after listening to positive music and therapeutic colouring, researchers said.<br /><br />The study was published in the journal Cogent Psychology.</p>
<p> Ladies, take note! Wearing lipstick may help you feel smarter and boost cognitive performance, say scientists who found that women who wear makeup are more likely to score higher academic grades.<br /><br />Researchers, including those from Harvard University in the US, studied how academic performance were affected by the so-called "lipstick effect" - a psychological phenomenon in which wearing cosmetics can make an individual feel a sense of overall enhancement in self-esteem, attitude, and personality.<br /><br />Cosmetics have a well-documented effect on wearers' psychology, in that the wearer feels more physically attractive and enjoys a consequent higher sense of self- esteem, researchers said.<br /><br />However, a less well-known effect of this boost in self- esteem is that cognitive abilities may also be influenced, in that they are improved by positive emotions.<br /><br />Researchers devised a psychological experiment in which female undergraduates were sorted into groups and given a series of tests.<br /><br />The test comprised of answering multiple choice questions about a chapter from a general psychology textbook. Before each of the three groups took the test, they all undertook a different mood-influencing task.<br /><br />One group applied makeup, another listened to "a positive music excerpt" and a third coloured a drawing of a human face.<br />The team found a significant increase in cognitive performance from the group who listened to positive music however, the makeup group performed the best.<br /><br />Test scores were significantly higher compared to those obtained after listening to positive music and therapeutic colouring, researchers said.<br /><br />The study was published in the journal Cogent Psychology.</p>