Influence of appearance schemas on mental health: A cross-sectional study of women

Abstract

Appearance Schemas Inventory-Revised （ASI-R） consists of two factors, Self-Evaluative Salience （SES） and Motivational Salience （MS）. The influence of these two ASI-R factors on mental health is unclear. The present study explored how these factors that are related to appearance schema influenced stress responses and psychological well-being. A cross-sectional study was conducted with female participants （N＝517; mean age＝48.30 years, SD＝12.81）. They completed questionnaires including scales assessing appearance schemas, stress responses, and psychological well-being. Data on participants’ height and weight were also recorded. We performed covariance structure analysis to verify our model. It was hypothesized that appearance schemas would influence stress responses and psychological well-being. The results indicated that SES, which assesses beliefs about how people’s appearance influences their self-worth and self-concept, increases stress responses and decreases psychological well-being. In contrast, MS, which assesses the efforts to be, or feel attractive, reduces stress responses and increases psychological well-being. These results suggest that the two factors of ASI-R inversely influence mental health.