Introduction. The phenomenon of lookism is one of the forms of human discrimination, which is based on non-compliance with the standards of beauty and attractiveness, is an interdisciplinary and relevant topic of research in psychology. The study of the peculiarities of a person's perception by others and the subsequent assessment of their personality, which is based on external attractiveness, acts as a complex and least studied topic. The purpose of the study was to study the peculiarities of human perception and the formation of an opinion about their personality by appearance in the presence/absence of appearance defects. Methodology and methods. The study involved 87 women and 23 men aged 13-57 years. 4 images (photos of a man and a woman) created by a neural network on the Internet without defects in appearance were selected. With the help of the Photoshop CS6 graphics program, external defects were added to the images. The photos were presented to the respondents randomly, divided into two groups: one photo without defects, the second with defects. To identify the peculiarities of perception and assessment of a person's personality, an author's questionnaire was developed. The analysis of the responses allowed us to identify 2 categories: “Appearance” and “Personal qualities” and 9 subcategories. In 7 categories, significant differences were revealed for men at the level of p≤0.01: “Attractive”, “Masculine image”, “Well-groomed/neat”, “Kind”, “Smart”, “Sociable”, “Confident in himself”, “Successful” and at the level of p≤0.05 “Reliable”. For a woman at the level of p≤0.01: “Attractive”, “Well-groomed/neat”, “Sociable”, “Financially successful”, “Successful in the family”, at the level of p≤0.05 “Self-confident”. The tendencies to assess a person's personality depending on the presence of a defect in his/her appearance are revealed. A person without defects is evaluated more positively, the presence of defects creates prerequisites for a negative attitude towards them. Conclusion. The results of the study can be used to develop programs of psychological assistance to victims of extremism and increase the level of tolerance to otherness.