Bronze is beautiful but pale can be pretty: The effects of appearance standards and mortality salience on sun-tanning outcomes.

Abstract

Study 1 demonstrated that mortality salience led to higher tanning intentions when the association between tanned skin and physical attractiveness was made salient and reduced intentions when the attractiveness of paler skin was highlighted. In Study 2, beachgoers, after reminders of death, reported greater preference for high sun protection sunscreen after reading an article about the attractiveness of paler skin tones. These findings contribute to an emerging understanding of how mortality concerns can influence health-related judgment and behavior.

Loneliness and smoking: The costs of the desire to reconnect

“…Another application of our findings could involve modifying advertisements and warning labels to frame smoking as an ineffective means of gaining social connection. Recent findings indicate that framing standards for health behaviors can increase intentions for engaging in healthy behaviors when people experience a threat to the self (Cox et al, 2009). Warning labels on cigarette packets suggesting that smoking will not enable people to experience acceptance from others may have a similar effect on reducing smoking among lonely or excluded people.…”

Trio of terror (pregnancy, menstruation, and breastfeeding): An existential function of literal self-objectification among women.

“…Indeed, in Roberts et al (2002), when the confederate dropped a tampon from her bag, she was not only liked less, but participants high in gender schematicity (i.e., conforming to traditional gender roles) also responded by placing more emphasis on appearance for women in general. Furthermore, in other research, reminders of mortality have been found to lead women, but not men, to place more emphasis on their own appearance (Grabe, Routledge, Cook, Andersen, & Amdt, 2005) and to strive to attain appearance ideals (e.g.. Cox et al, 2009). …”

An unscathed past in the face of death: Mortality salience reduces individuals' regrets

“…On the same note, individuals tend to avoid behaviors and distance themselves from opinions that pose a threat to their self-esteem (Goldenberg, McCoy, Pyszczynski, Greenberg, & Solomon, 2000). The striving for positive self-esteem goes so far that even irrational and potentially harmful behavior, such as risky driving, smoking, or tanning, will be pursued if the behavior contributes to an individual's positive self-esteem (Ben-Ari, Florian, & Mikulincer, 1999;Cox et al, 2009;Hansen, Winzeler, & Topolinski, 2010;Routledge, et al, 2004). For instance, Hansen and colleagues (2010) showed that participants who derived self-esteem from smoking improved their attitudes towards MORTALITY SALIENCE AND REGRET -7 -smoking after being exposed to death warnings on cigarette labels compared to control warnings.…”