The Impact of Cosmetic and Beauty Campaigns on Women’s Mentality

Abstract

The main objective of this research is to explore how modern beauty and cosmetic marketing campaigns and advertisements affect women’s health, emotionally and mentally. In three studies, participants were shown an assortment of ads related to cosmetics and beauty ideals that focus on cosmetics and beauty. Ads were categorized as “positive beauty/real beauty” or “guilt-inducing/pressurized beauty ideals” to show underlying issues that women face after repeatedly coming into contact with advertisements concerning beauty ideals. Studies 1A and 1B were distributed to college-aged, cis-gendered females (i.e. 18–25 years) in the U.S. concerning their evaluation, attitudes, and emotions toward two types of ads and showed that the positive (vs. negative) effect of real beauty ads (vs. guilt-inducing ads) on confidence (vs. feeling of insecurity) is stronger for ads featuring the body compared to the face. In Study 2, we replicated the findings and showed that confidence and the feeling of insecurity mediate individuals’ attitudes toward these ads. Our findings contribute to the understanding of women’s mentality living alongside pressurized beauty ideals and how beauty/cosmetic brands can take back the narrative of what real women look like.