New research has suggested that users should have bookcases or plants in their background to inspire the most trust in them during video calls.
A study from Durham University sought to determine how first impressions shape how we behave online and the judgements initially formed when interacting with new people. The research specifically examined whether a meeting participant's Zoom background could be fostering trust in them from other users or thwarting that trust.
The researchers took 72 photos of 36 adults from a stock photo database in which each person had both a happy and a neutral facial expression. The 72 photos were then framed on different virtual backgrounds and given an artificial Zoom border to reinforce the impression of a video conference call — albeit the study findings presumably translate across every video conferencing platform.
The researchers categorised six backgrounds for the study as home (living room), blurred home, bookcase, plants, blank wall and "novelty", which was a walrus in an icy environment.
The research comprised 167 participants between the ages of 19 and 68 who were asked to fill in a questionnaire about how trustworthy and competent their instincts were about the people in each visual they came across.
Abi Cook, Meg Thompson, and Research Lead Paddy Ross, the authors of the paper, wrote in "Virtual first impressions: Zoom backgrounds affect judgements of trust and competence":
Faces presented on the plants and bookcase background were consistently rated as the most trustworthy and most competent, contrasting the home and novelty backgrounds which received lower trustworthiness and competence ratings."
Ross told CNN that he was impressed by how "robust" the responses to the study were. Ross suggested the findings highlighted that, while there is a degree of understanding around not everybody having access to a professional-looking home office, having a living room or novelty background "still seems a little unserious".
"It's like you haven't put any thought into how you are presenting yourself, and so this seems less competent than someone(...) who seems able to keep plants alive, or someone with a bookcase who looks like they are trying to better themselves," Ross said.
The Research's Other Findings on Trust and Competence
The study didn't just examine the impact of backgrounds on trust and competence.
A meeting participant's mood and expression were also important factors, with the smiling stock photo of each person being considered more trustworthy and competent than the neutral alternative.
