“Without wearing any mask of which we are conscious, we have a special face for every friend.”(Holmes, OW, 1911)If life is a stage, then as casual observers with first impressions from our friend John, we too are actors in the play. I could express my first impressions of John. Furthermore, the way we see these two situations has more to say about us than it does about John. How do first impressions affect us? Our brain processes and integrates a variety of input factors that help us arrive at a “first impression”. This “brain process” works like a road map that helps us reach a conclusion, with high accuracy in just thirty seconds (Schiller, D., Freeman, J., Mitchell, J., Uleman, J., & Phelps , E., 2009). Although there are perhaps a variety of factors that could influence this process. I believe the biggest influence on a first impression is your “need structure”. There are five hierarchical levels of needs listed in Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, A., 1968). Starting from the lowest level: physiological, an individual ideally satisfies and progresses through each step towards fulfillment. The remaining steps in order are: Security, Love and Belonging, Esteem, then Self-Actualization and Self-Transcendence. So, how does this framework of needs influence our process of first impressions of other individuals? First impressions “impress us” because when presented with the opportunity to form a first impression, we put our current needs picture in front of the first impression we have. they are going to do about the other person. The needs we most value and protect guide our self-interest and provide the filter in which we form our impressions and assumptions about another person....... middle of paper ......14. doi:10.1038/nn.2278Maslow, A. (1968). Towards a psychology of being. (2nd ed.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold. Tay, L., Diener, E. (2011). Needs and subjective well-being in the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol 101(2), August 2011, 354-365. doi: 10.1037/a0023779Maslow, A. (1968). Towards a psychology of being. (2nd ed.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold. Weisbuch, M., Ambady, N., Clarke, A. L., Achor, S., & Weele, J. (2010). Being consistent: The role of verbal-nonverbal consistency in first impressions. Basic and applied social psychology, 32(3), 261-268. doi: 10.1080/01973533.2010.495659Carl Gustav Jung. (2010). Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th edition, 1. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.Ambivert. (n.d.). In the online Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/ambivert