Unrelated look-alikes: Replicated study of personality similarity and qualitative findings on social relatedness

• Replicated study shows that personality similarity is negligible in unrelated look-alikes.
• Unrelated look-alikes express little social closeness toward one another.
• Unrelated look-alikes do not experience feeling of familiarity toward one another.

Twin research critics assert that similar treatment of monozygotic (MZ) twins results from their matched physical appearance, and that their similar treatment explains their within-pair behavioral similarities. A genetic explanation of MZ twins’ resemblance is, thereby, dismissed. To address this challenge, Segal (2013) found a lack of similarity in personality and self-esteem in pairs of unrelated look-alike individuals. The present study describes a constructive replication of that work, confirming these findings. It also presents an analysis of social relatedness within U-LA pairs. Most participants expressed moderate to little social closeness and familiarity, upon meeting and subsequently, over an average 8.98 year period (SD = 7.82). A qualitative analysis of U-LAs’ responses to unstructured social relationship questions further explored their perceptions of, and responses to, their physical resemblance. Participants were generally divided as to perceptions of “some” physical resemblance and “no” physical resemblance upon meeting; two-thirds indicated “some” resemblance at the time of the study. Reactions to their physical resemblance were distributed among positive reactions, negative reactions and within-pair contrasts. Theories addressing the bases of social relatedness provide context for these findings.