Kiwi Men Worried About Their Looks: Survey
Kiwi men are worried about their looks with hair loss, dandruff and weight gain their three biggest concerns according to a new trans-Tasman study.
The Head & Shoulders Hair Retain Survey showed that more than a quarter of men (29%) said they were worried about having dandruff and just over a quarter (26%) were concerned about losing their hair.
The results also show that New Zealand males were anxious about their waistlines as well as their hairlines! Just under two thirds of Kiwi men (63%) were concerned about putting on weight, compared to just less than half of their Australian counterparts.
Auckland psychologist Sara Chatwin says having hair is closely aligned with many masculine characteristics so when men lose their hair, their self-esteem often plummets.
“Many men define themselves by the way they wear their hair. This may be due to traditional beliefs that suggest hair is associated with virility, social status, strength and youth,” says Chatwin.
“When their hair diminishes or gets dandruff (that is perceived as dirty) men may feel less virile, weak, older and generally less attractive,” she says.
Chatwin says with this in mind men will often go “the extra distance” to ensure their hair is full, dandruff flake free and healthy looking.
“These days men are taking more time to look after their personal grooming habits and hair maintenance is part of that package,” she says.
This may be the case for Kiwi men but when it comes to appearances it seems Australian men aren’t nearly as alarmed about certain aspects of their appearance! Only 13% of Australian men worried about dandruff and just 18% said they were apprehensive about hair loss.
Kiwi respondents said that when it came to wrinkles they were not overly concerned, with only 17% saying it was an issue for them; excess hair was even less of a worry with 13% of Kiwi men saying being overly hairy upset them.
Interestingly Kiwi women were also more concerned about men’s hair than any other appearance issues. Eight out of 10 Kiwi women said dandruff on a man’s shoulders was more of a turn-off than thinning hair! Six out of 10 women surveyed also said that unkempt hair on men was a sign of laziness.
Nearly half (47%) of Kiwi women thought men with a full head of hair are generally more attractive compared to 44% of Australian women.
When it came to males Kiwi women were generally less concerned withbaldness just 15% said bald patches were the first thing they noticed about a man, compared to 22% of Australian women.
Similarly hair was not considered a strong predictor of success with just 12% and 13% of Kiwi and Australian women respectively saying men with a full head of hair tend to be more successful.
The survey was commissioned by Head & Shoulders to launch its new Hair Retain for Men shampoo. The specially formulated product works to reduce dandruff flakes from the first wash but also smoothes the scalp, slows down hair fall due to breakage and provides hair care and protection.
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Notes to editors:
*The Head & Shoulders Hair Retain Survey
The trans-Tasman survey of over 2,000 respondents was commissioned by Head & Shoulders Hair Retain and conducted by Perceptive Research in New Zealand (in April 2010) and Galaxy Research in Australia (in November 2008).
Male respondents were asked the following question: “Thinking about your own personal appearance, which of the following aspects of your appearance are you ever concerned about?”
Almost two in three Kiwi males are concerned about putting on weight (63%). Less than a third are concerned about any of the other aspects such as dandruff (29%), thinning hair (26%), wrinkles (17%), or excess hair (13%).
This compares to 48% of Australian men concerned about putting on weight, 13% concerned about dandruff, 18% concerned about thinning hair or hair loss, 12% about unwanted excess hair, and 12% wrinkles.
Female respondents were asked: “Thinking about men and male grooming, please consider each of the following statements and indicate whether you agree or disagree for each one”.
The majority of Kiwi females agree that dandruff is more of a turn off than thinning hair (81%), and unkempt hair is a sign of laziness (61%). There is almost an even split of those who think men with a full head of hair are more attractive (47% agree, 42% disagree).
The majority of females disagree that the first thing they notice on a man is a bald patch (74%), and that men with a full head of hair tend to be more successful (65%).
In comparison, 83% of Australian females agree that dandruff is more of a turn off than thinning hair, 61% agree that unkempt hair on a man is a sign of laziness, 44% agree that men with a full head of hair are generally more attractive, 22% agree that bald patches are the first thing they notice on a man, and 13% agree men with a full head of hair tend to be more successful.
Sara Chatwin Biography: MNZPsS; M.A. Hons; Registered NZCER Tester; Sports Psych. Cert.AUT
Sara Chatwin is a Registered Psychologist with 14 years of experience in the field. Sara is used widely on television. She has hosted and provided expert commentary on a number of tv documentaries, family series and reality series (How Normal Are You; Family Confidential, My House My Castle, DNZ, Flipside,One News, Sky Sport, tv3 news, Target). Additionally she contributes to many radio programmes (The Edge; More FM, The Breeze; NewsTalk ZB) and gives comment in print media on things 'psychological', social and para-medical. Sara regularly contributes to weekly and monthly magazines. (Cleo, New Idea, NZ Fitness, Family Health Diary, Sport Unleashed). Sara also runs her own psychology practice MindWorks in Auckland.