Amy Garno
Staff Writer
Garno: What kind of reaction are you getting from your family and friends for letting your beard grow?
Haukereid: My parents don’t really like it. They can’t wait for me to shave; they are looking forward to it. My friends are surprised I haven’t cut it yet, and they know I will win the bet.
Garno: Do you ever get called “red Beard?”
Haukereid: Surprisingly no. I have been called “Ginger Beard”, by my fraternity buddies though.
Garno: Does your beard ever get in the way?
Haukereid: No; not really. It keeps me warm.
Garno: Do you think you look good with a beard?
Haukereid: Yeah. I had facial hair as long as I could grow it, but never this long. I think it complements me.
Garno: Because you had it so long, are you becoming attached to your beard?
Haukereid: Yes. It’s like a relationship; it gets annoying at times but other times it’s awesome. When I went to the barber to get my hair cut my beard stuck out even more. It looked bigger and puffier.
Garno: Do the girls like or dislike your beard?
Haukereid: It’s on the fence. They either like it or they hate it. If they like it they want me to keep growing it. If they don’t like it, they tell me I should shave.
Garno: Will you consider not shaving your beard after New Year’s Eve?
Haukereid: Maybe, maybe not. If I keep it, I will trim it so it will look nice and more maintained. I do want to shave it just to see people’s reactions when I come back next semester.
Garno: Are you concerned that you might be mistaken for “Wolf Man Jack?”
Haukereid: No, because I don’t care what they think. Even if they think I look like “Wolf Man Jack.” I don’t care.
Has social influence caused Mark Haukereid to accept a bet and grow out his beard?
is a junior at Siena Heights University (SHU) majoring in art and a member of the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity. For the past three years Mark has participated in the Homeless for the Homeless event in the fall. It’s an annual event in which Pi Lambda Phi members live in a cardboard village on the front lawn of Ledwidge for five days. The fraternity raises awareness of homelessness and collects food and money for the Daily Bread, an Adrian, Mich. soup kitchen and food pantry, and the Salvation Army.
Last year after the homeless event was over, Haukereid and his fraternity buddies were watching the movie, “Nocked Up.” There was a wager in the movie in which one guys bet another guy to grow out his beard for one year.
KJ Meyer, one of the fraternity guys, looked at Haukereid and said, “I bet you wouldn’t do the same and let your beard grow out.”
“What do you want to bet?” Haukereid responded.
“How about your next year’s dues for the fraternity for not shaving for a year?” Meyer challenged.
“You’re on!”
The last time Haukereid shaved his face was New Year’s Eve of 2012, and he won’t shave again until this New Year’s Eve.
Social influence occurs when an individual’s thoughts, feelings or actions are affected by other people to induce a change. Peer pressure, persuasion, obedience, marketing sales, and conformity all fall under the category of social influence. Haukereid and his friend Meyer were influenced by the movie and Haukereid was influenced by his friend.
Spectra Editorial Comment:
Many of us don’t realize that we can be easily influenced to do something that we ordinarily wouldn’t do by the media and people around us. If we stop and think about it, many of the things we do are the result of social influence. Stay tuned in to get more updates on Mark’s beard.
