Who is Beholding my Beauty? Thinness Ideals, Weight, and Women's Responses to Appearance Evaluation

Having one's physical appearance scrutinized is a common experience for women. We examined 274 Northeastern American undergraduate women's responses to having their appearance evaluated 1) by themselves or by another student, and 2) in comparison to the appearance of female peers or without comparison. As hypothesized, comparison to peers and evaluation by another predicted poorer views of the self and of one's appearance, but only in conjunction with being overweight, endorsing thinness ideals, or their combination. Endorsement of thinness ideals and being overweight also independently predicted lower appearance state self-esteem. Few effects on mood were found. Results underscore the power of appearance evaluation to influence women's self-perceptions, particularly in those whose appearance deviates from culturally prescribed standards of beauty.