Are mirror reflections a false image of yourself?

[Anonymous]

I heard that whole thing that we think we are 5x less attractive than we think we are... so when I look in the mirror, I think I look pretty good, but that's just a reflection, so is that accurate how I look? Do I look different than in my mirror? :(

[ksmbutt]

there are actually studies about this, I'll try to find the links, but I'll post what I can remember

okay, speaking in terms of a 1-10 scale one being ugly and 10 being hot, most people out there rate their own attractiveness at 7 on average. but wait, 7 is above average. the average should be around 5. because that's the median, smack in the middle of what's ugly and pretty. you can do the math, how can the average person be rated a 7, if the true average must be at 5? that would be mathematically impossible right? that would mean that the vast majority of people you see are good looking people and we all know that this just isn't true. this means that people rate themselves higher than they actually are.

and you do look different in mirrors because we can only see ourselves in the mirror. the mirror indeed flips the image, so the self we are seeing isn't actually our true selves because what our friends and family see is an un-flipped image of us. that being said, if we were to see ourselves through our friend's eyes, we would look different than how we think we look for two reasons. the first one being that our eyes are fond of things that are more familiar to them, and guess what we see everyday in the mirror! and the second reason is that their perceptions and personalities are just plain different than ours, so it's only natural that they don't think we look the way we think we look.

[ksmbutt]

i wanted to find the articles where the studies were actually posted, but this was the best I could find

link wiki article on illusory superiority

[wallaber]

The only thing inaccurate about a mirror is the fact that your image is reversed. Apart from that, the mirror doesn't lie! The only thing that will vary is how you perceive that image. The whole "the mirror makes you more/less attractive" thing isn't really true. Our minds tell us those things, not the reflection.

[ksmbutt]

i agree with you

[BobBobinson]

The mirror is probably a more accurate representation of yourself than certain camers are.

Bad cameras make you look worse, good cameras can make you look better (with the proper angles, lighting and camera settings).

[Alanaaa]

I think it would be the other way around .