No need to panic if you are losing your hair. Men with shaven heads are perceived as being more masculine, says an academic

That a full head of hair denotes strength dates back to stories of Samson in the temple. But new research suggests going bald can be a tonic for thrusting executives fighting a losing battle to keep their hair.

Men with shaved heads are perceived as more masculine, dominant and even to have greater leadership potential, according to a study by the (bald) academic Albert Mannes, of the University of Pennsylvania's prestigious Wharton business school.

His findings may explain the growing trend for US company bosses to sport what are described as "power buzz" haircuts, with Microsoft's Steve "Bullet Head" Ballmer and Amazon boss Jeff Bezos seen as being at the vanguard of the smooth and shiny movement. On this side of the Atlantic, serial retail entrepreneur Allan Leighton and former Cable & Wireless boss John Pluthero are among the executives to have embraced the look.

Mannes's study – Shorn Scalps and Perceptions of Male Dominance – is published in this month's Social Psychological and Personality Science journal.

The impetus for his research, he said, was his own experience in his early 30s, when he began losing his hair. "After fighting it for a while, one day I just decided to shave it off," he said. According to a blog on Wharton's website, Mannes received some positive feedback but his new appearance had "one unexpected consequence" – people started to treat him with more deference.

He ran tests asking people to look at photos of men whose hair had been digitally removed and found that bald men were perceived to be more dominant, taller and stronger than when they had a full head of hair. Based on the findings, he developed the theory that head shavers are regarded as more powerful than the hirsute because the look is associated with "hypermasculine" images such as soldiers and Hollywood action heroes such as Bruce Willis.

"The broad takeaway is that perceptions about leadership and related traits like dominance can emerge from peculiar characteristics that aren't really related to leadership at all," Mannes said.

A not very scientific sweep of City bosses shows that luxurious locks could be an early alarm bell for shareholders. Take G4S boss Nick Buckles and his trademark thick mane: Buckles is perhaps best described as being in the "last chance salon" after the security group's shambolic handling of its Olympic security contract.

But aberrations abound, such as Donald Trump, who insists his comb-over is "100% real". The property tycoon has amassed a personal fortune of more than $3bn in spite of his hair. Closer to home, Sir Richard Branson's unruly mop has hardly held him back, while Wetherspoon chairman, Tim Martin, has created one of the most enduringly successful pub chains with a 1970s-style footballer's mullet brushing his shoulders.

As a footnote, Mannes's study offers a salutary message to sufferers of male pattern baldness – roughly a third of men by the age of 45. It found that men with a thinning thatch were viewed as the least attractive and powerful. Could it be time for embattled Royal Bank of Scotland boss Stephen Hester to reach for the clippers?