It'll make you seem intellectual.
"People's middle initials have a particular and powerful effect on how people are perceived by others," say psychologists Wijnand A.P. Van Tilburg of the University of Southampton and Eric R. Igou of the University of Limerick.
"The display of middle initials increases the perceived social status of these people," they write in the European Journal of Social Psychology, and it "positively biases inferences about their intellectual capacity and performance."
The researchers reached these conclusions by combining seven studies on middle initials. In one study, 85 students were asked to read an essay about Einstein's theory of relativity and rate it on quality. The author of the essay was presented with a range of names: "David Clark," "David F. Clark," "David F.P. Clark," and "David F.P.R. Clark."
As it turns out, "David F. Clark" outdid "David Clark," while "David F.P.R. Clark" received the most raving reviews.