So, you’re at a job interview dinner and the interviewer orders a glass of the house Merlot. You should order:
- a) the same
b) a Coke
If you answered b) a Coke, you’ve got a better chance of getting the job than the rest of us, according to a new study (found via Reuters). I totally would have ordered the wine, and my only concern would have been looking rude by asking to see a wine list and ordering something better than the Merlot. I would have been wrong, apparently.
Researchers at the University of Michigan and the University of Pennsylvania found that an association with alcohol caused observers to “expect cognitive impairment” in a job seeker. This bias has been dubbed the “Imbibing Idiot Bias” by the study authors. That’s actually the title of the paper, “The Imbibing Idiot Bias: Merely Holding an Alcoholic Beverage Can be Hazardous to Your (Perceived) Intelligence.” Yikes.
Across a series of six experiments, Scott Rick and Maurice Schweizer found that people think you’re dumber when you drink – even if they’re drinking themselves.
In one of the experiments, 610 “mid-level managers” whose occupational roles were either Director, Manager, or Assistant Manager at US companies, were asked to evaluate the text dialogue of an interview, held over dinner, accompanied by photos of the interview.
The script was the same but, “We varied the manager’s drink choice (Coke or a glass of the house Merlot) and the candidate’s drink choice (Coke or a glass of the house Merlot).”
Regardless of what the manager ordered, drinkers were seen as not so smart. Candidates who ordered wine after the manager ordered a Coke were “especially punished” with low ratings for perceived intelligence.
“Job candidates who ordered an alcoholic beverage in simulated interviews were perceived as less intelligent and less hireable than those who did not, even when the boss had ordered an alcoholic beverage first. In a sixth experiment, we demonstrate that job candidates fail to anticipate that ordering an alcoholic beverage will reduce their perceived intelligence.”
They also found (in one of the other experiments, I think – it’s a long paper) that the bias persisted when the observer knew that the person had not chosen the beverage themselves.
I’m suspicious of these findings — If you order a Coke at dinner with me, unless we’re at some mock 50s diner, I’m going to think you’re either pregnant or from a small town (I admit I have weird food and drink-related snobberies. I’m not proud of it) – and think they’re probably specific to North America, as opposed to Europe. And if they prove anything, it’s that we (by which I mean THEY) are both deeply parochial and deeply hypocritical.
But that opinion isn’t going to get you a job. So, at least now you know. Make of it what you will. I’m going to have a cocktail.
Elizabeth, I tend to agree with your conclusion much more readily than with the papers conclusion. I’d also like to know exactly where their research pool came from; I’m not trying to be confrontational, but let’s face it, North Americans in general, and Americans even more so than Canadians, have a pretty puritan outlook towards alcoholic consumption. Furthermore, I’d have to ask myself: if the boss is that hypocritical, a) how intelligent are they not to be able to recognize the blatant hypocracy, and b) do I really want to work for them anyway?
I wouldn’t drink Coke at dinner, but I also wouldn’t be drinking alcohol in the middle of the day, or with potential bosses. I normally order a glass of water with my meal. How will that make me look? Cheap and/or poor, I suppose.
I would not work for a company that judged people like that–it’s that simple!
Just imagine the opinions they would entertain about certain minorities, people with any kind of disability, and older workers!
And, for an interviewer to typecast a job seeker as an “imbibing idiot” for accepting a glass of wine, especially when the interviewer is having one, is the absolute height of hypocrisy.
Again, that company can take a long walk off a short pier!
I don’t think it is, as you say, a puritan or a hypocritical look. It’s simple, even if the potential boss is drinking he or she isn’t the one being interviewed, and even if this is a dinner interview it is still a job interview and therefore the interviewer is looking for the behavior this person will show during his or her job. If a person fails to see that and asks for an alcoholic beverage, yes it shows at least a lack of common sense of perceiving that his is not a dinner with friends where you can act as you would normally. So I tend to agree with the paper’s finding even though I’m not North American and come from a culture that usually has a glass of whine at dinner at home.
It is the same concept as not wearing shorts and slippers to an interview even if the boss is. You’re the one being examined not the boss.
I also find that nowadays perceiving the person that doesn’t ask for whine as cheap, pregnant or from a small town is also a vision that is a bit limited seeing as many people nowadays are from the “healthy generation” who just don’t drink point blank no matter how cultured they are.
I remember attending a “getting ready for recruitment” workshop at an engineering student conference before I graduated (almost ten years ago now!). The workshop leader asked that exact same question and gave us the same answer … she even said an employer offering you to share a bottle with them was testing you and saying “yes” would mean failing the test!!
Like previous commenters, we came to the conclusion that it was really about cultural difference between Quebec/Canada and the US. The conference was in Seattle, most americans agreed with this while most of my fellow canadians and all fellow quebecers would have gladly accepted that glass of wine.
Our legal drinking age is a little earlier, it probably makes a big difference. 18 to 21 is a key age to develop healthy habits that will last for many years. It’s hard to see how keeping any level of alcohol consumption illegal during those years will help you create a healthy habit of moderate consumption.
Its absurd. It doesn’t matter whether you had a glass of wine or beer. It matters how do you face the interview. Answer precisely to the point to his or her questions. Ask questions if any to the interviewer. You know having a glass of wine, beer or a scotch before or during interview process will bring your nervous or stress level down. Its a well known fact. As long as you behave yourself as a right candidate I’m sure you got that job.
Yeah, only problem is that these days? Employers hold ALL the cards. They can exercise all the bad behavior they want – not meeting commitments to engaged candidates specifically, but also casting stones when they live in a glass house. They can have badly worded and spelled postings, but will likely judge your application on those merits. They’ll ask your salary expectations but will not be willing to share what their expectations are.
Only thing I can suggest is to be entirely above reproach for anything related to the selection process. Do everything right so they have no stone to throw back.
I have to say the same as Ophelia, I would probably order water for the interview. In fact to make a point that I am ordering water I would probably specify I want lemon in it. It may look like I am being cheap, but I just wouldn’t be comfortable having alcohol in an interview. And by specifing lemon, I think that I am showing that I know what I want and am not just settling for plain water. I think water is a good choice for an interview too; it’s simple, quenches any dry mouth which may come from speaking or nervousness, and keeps a sober mind of caffeine or alcohol. Afterall I am in an interview and the whold point is to be judged to see if I am the right person for the job.
Why the HR ( Interviewer ) order a drink ? How valuable observation of that ( even slightly) impaired interviewer?
I disagree with the paper’s findings from my own experience. I have taken a cup of wine together with the recruiter, both in third round interview, in both Mexico and Canada, and landed a managerial and a director-level job in each case, with a 5 year gap between them. Both jobs were in sales where you are expected to interact with clients exactly in the same environment: at a restaurant having a cup of wine with your client(s). Proving that you can manage swiftly even with the wine is a proof of your abilty to perform. Certainly, you should certainly not ask for wine if your interviewer, or client for that matter, does not ask for one. Maybe the North Americans in between are different?
Drinking a nice European sophisticated bottled water is an excellent option – classier than Coke.
Myself, I kind of avoid any booze with any colleagues – I know that I have a bit of a weak head. I kind of think that the interviewer is behaving inappropriately, actually – Alcohol is for recreation, not for the workplace.
“If you order a Coke at dinner with me, unless we’re at some mock 50s diner, I’m going to think you’re either pregnant or from a small town”
I’m going to think you’re from a hick town for evaluating people based on your (narrow) spectrum of experience. Has it occurred to you that one might have religious, cultural, spiritual or simply medical reasons (such as allergies) for skipping the alcohol? You, sir, need to live in a more diverse place.
Nowadays nobody really cares whether you’re having an alcoholic beverage or a non-alcoholic one at social gatherings and parties. So the notion that you need to be able to take a glass of wine and show that you are still able to “manage” for a sales position is BS, to put it mildly. I’ve been in sales and marketing in some senior positions with big companies for almost 20 years in three continents (not meaning to boast but just to give the readers an idea that I know something about what I’m talking about). Even for a huge product launch where they have a toast, they always have an option of champagne or “other”; the “other” may be orange juice, water, or some other seedy soft drink. I’ve chosen “other” so many times because I just don’t feel like an alcoholic beverage at that time of the day or whatever. Nobody gives a shit. And if I was the interviewer, and my prospective candidate ordered an alcoholic beverage, I would straight-away give him or her some negative points. It’s not “old-school”, just that it brings his or her esteem down a bit and borders on being “cheeky” in front of a person who might be his or her boss. I would never order an alcoholic beverage during an interview even if the interviewer does. The same goes for smoking, though now in most offices smoking is not allowed; when I was younger and if my hiring manager had offered me a smoke I would not take it up. I hope this helps. Mind you, most hirers in big companies belong to my generation or even older, so I think this should be taken quite seriously!!
Adriana needs to learn how to spell and needs to do some research on the health benefits of alcohol. That being said – drinking during an interview is a no no.
Why would any potential employee drink alcohol during a lunch interview? I wouldn’t hire the person either. It goes to show how important alcohol is that people would even debate this.
I don’t think its a matter of hypocrisy its a matter of work ethic. As far as your potential future employer is concerned this interview is your first day on the job and you are not practicing working form. The second part is risk management; they don’t know you yet. Taking on a new employee is an investment in both time (=money) and money (+more money) and there are certain risks associated with alcohol consumption (ie Does this person drink during important tasks every day? Is this person going to drink to excess at office functions?). The point is alcohol is a serious drug (whether you call it that or not) and its better not to let imagined hypothetical situations get in the way of getting a new job. Establish restraint and composure and it will reflect more fondly upon you.
I disagree. I went out for a job interview lunch with two development managers at the Shopsy’s near the Hockey Hall of Fame. We sat on the patio, they each ordered a beer, and I played it safe and got a ginger ale.
There are lots of variables in an interview, but I got the distinct impression they’d been happier if I’d ordered a beer too. Didn’t get a second interview.
I wouldn’t go to a dinner interview; a respectable company can interview during daytime business hours in an office. “Dinner” is an ambiguous word; to some it means lunch, to others it means supper.
I wouldn’t put up with a drunk sent to interview me.
“Candidates who ordered wine after the manager ordered a Coke were “especially punished” with low ratings for perceived intelligence.” A fitting conclusion.
I would respond that lets have the interview now before you drink.
If you so choose to drink after you have recorded the responses, I’ll join you at a later date when I have something to celebrate.
Time magazine published a new study on 30 August that shows that heavy drinkers live longer than non-drinkers.
This was a perfect Friday subject for the Second Opinion Tribune which explores these findings in a new article. It may be of interest to your readers as employers would employ a longer living candidate ;-)
http://thesecondopiniontribune.blogspot.com/2010/09/drink-youll-live-longer-news-study.html
Well i took a slight amount of offence, considering i don’t drink at supper AND i’m from a small town. I think the job interview is the variable that is too large. Perhaps it’s not so much the fact that they don’t drink with their supper, but maybe it’s a sign of respect and responsibility. Why would you want to get all liquored up during a job interview, i wouldn’t hire somebody that tried to pull that. Mind you i am from a small town and have never had a dinner interview. But if i did, i sure as heck wouldn’t order anything irresponsible. If you want to judge me for what i drink and eat I think that’s a personal problem, and shouldn’t have anything to do with being hired for a professional position. Maybe judging people by their lifestyles is an american thing. I sure hope so, I enjoy not being an alcoholic up here in Canada.
FWIW, I landed a very good job with a Quebec based aero-space company over beer and popcorn in a hotel bar! Lets hope american puritanical BS doesn’t further permeate Canada. Next thing you know they’ll be asking us to pee in a paper cup. Actually, I dismissed a job with a company in Chicago for this very reason. Grow up and stop letting the rabid, right, elite, eg. Koch brothers, tell you how to live.
Wow, I *totally* would have got that wrong too… I’d probably have made a dismissive comment about merlot being “big baby wine” and then demand curtly to see a list of Grand Cru Vin de Bourgogne. Then I’d probably make a truly dreadful attempt at humour by imitating paul giammati’s character in Sideways and scream “We are not drinking any *f&%$ing* merlot”.